Chapter 4 - The Sister Who Always Needed More
Clara and Sienna had not always been enemies.
When they were children, Sienna followed Clara everywhere.
She slept in Clara’s bed during thunderstorms and waited outside the bathroom door while Clara washed blood from scraped knees. Clara taught her to ride a bicycle, helped with homework and spent the first paycheck from her summer job buying Sienna a violin.
The rivalry began because Evelyn fed it carefully.
Sienna was delicate.
Clara was strong.
Sienna needed encouragement.
Clara did not need praise.
Sienna’s mistakes were signs of sensitivity.
Clara’s mistakes were evidence of selfishness.
Whenever Sienna wanted something Clara possessed, Evelyn transformed possession into guilt.
A dress.
A room.
A scholarship opportunity.
Eventually, Clara began surrendering things before anyone asked.
At twenty-three, she declined a position in London because Richard said Sienna’s anxiety would worsen if Clara left.
At twenty-six, she invested her savings in Richard’s consulting company after Evelyn warned that the stress of failure might damage the family.
At thirty, she allowed Sienna to move into her apartment for what was supposed to be three months.
Sienna stayed two years and left only after becoming engaged to Adrian.
Through it all, Clara told herself that love sometimes looked like sacrifice.
She never asked why the sacrifice moved in only one direction.
On the first afternoon aboard the Celestia Crown, Clara avoided her family.
She explored the penthouse, a private residence spanning the ship’s forward upper deck. It contained two bedrooms, a dining room, a library and a terrace with a glass railing.
A framed photograph of August Sterling stood on the desk.
Someone had placed a fresh white rose beside it.
The captain visited shortly after departure.
Henri Moreau was in his late fifties, with silver hair and the posture of a man accustomed to storms.
He examined Clara’s pendant.
“The original compass,” he said.
“You recognize it?”
“I saw your grandfather wear it during my first year at sea.”
Clara gave him the sealed phrase.
“The sea remembers the first name.”
Moreau bowed his head.
“Identity confirmed.”
He unlocked a wooden cabinet behind August’s photograph. Inside rested a leather ledger and a small brass key.
“The trust requires a second verification before full control transfers,” he explained. “You must review the ledger and identify the person your grandfather called the silent partner.”
“How long will that take?”
“That depends on what Richard has hidden from you.”
Clara opened the ledger.
Most pages recorded old routes, ship purchases and shareholder agreements.
Several pages had been cut out.
“Who removed these?”
Moreau’s expression tightened.
“We believed August did.”
“You don’t anymore?”
“Three years ago, Richard requested access to this cabinet. He claimed he was acting for you.”
“Did you let him in?”
“No. But someone else did.”
“Who?”
Moreau looked toward the door.
“An officer who disappeared before we could question him.”
A soft chime sounded from the penthouse entrance.
The concierge appeared.
“Ms. Sterling, your sister is outside.”
Clara closed the ledger.
“Did she say why?”
“She says it concerns your mother’s health.”
Of course it did.
Clara allowed Sienna inside.
Her sister entered wearing a cream dress and the diamond ring Adrian had displayed at the terminal.
She looked around the penthouse in disbelief.
“So it’s true.”
“What?”
“You stole our upgrade.”
Clara nearly smiled.
“You were never assigned this penthouse.”
“Dad said the company gave it to us.”
“Dad lied.”
Sienna crossed her arms.
“Mom is crying.”
“Why?”
“Because you embarrassed her at check-in. They gave us two tiny rooms on deck four.”
“They are balcony cabins.”
“They smell like cleaning fluid.”
“They are newer than my apartment.”
Sienna’s expression sharpened.
“You planned this.”
“I corrected the reservation.”
“You knew Adrian was going to propose.”
Clara glanced at the ring.
“He already did.”
“He was supposed to do it during the captain’s dinner in the penthouse.”
“Then he’ll need a new location.”
Sienna stepped closer.
“Why are you doing this to me?”
The question almost broke Clara because Sienna appeared genuinely wounded.
Then Clara remembered the fraudulent marriage certificate.
“Did you know Adrian listed himself as my husband?”
Sienna’s face became blank.
Only for a fraction of a second.
It was enough.
Clara lowered her voice.
“You knew.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“A legal document was submitted under my name.”
“Maybe it was an administrative error.”
“Marriage certificates are not administrative errors.”
Sienna turned away.
“Dad said it was temporary.”
Clara felt cold.
“What was temporary?”
Sienna pressed her lips together.
Clara stepped in front of her.
“What did Dad tell you?”
“He said there was an old family account. He said it was supposed to belong to both of us, but Grandpa put everything under your name because he was confused before he died.”
“That isn’t true.”
“How do you know?”
“Because Grandpa recorded a message.”
Fear moved across Sienna’s face.
“Where?”
Clara did not answer.
Sienna looked toward the ledger.
Her eyes widened.
Before she could reach it, Clara closed the cabinet and took the brass key.
“You need to leave.”
“Clara, listen to me. Dad said Adrian only needed access for one hour. After that, the account would be divided fairly.”
“Fairly?”
“Half for you. Half for me.”
“And what would Adrian receive?”
Sienna hesitated.
That was when Clara understood.
Sienna did not know.
Adrian had promised her half of an inheritance he intended to take entirely.
A call came through on the penthouse phone.
Captain Moreau’s voice was urgent.
“Ms. Sterling, remain in your suite. We have discovered that someone accessed the legacy archive before departure.”
Clara looked at the open ledger.
“What was taken?”
“The missing pages.”
Sienna went white.
Clara slowly faced her.
May you like
Her sister’s hand moved toward the pocket of her dress.
Clara saw the folded edge of old yellow paper.
