Chapter 3 - The Man Who Lied to EveryoneRichard wanted to punch him.
Instead, he grabbed Ethan by the collar and slammed him against the security-room wall.
“Start talking.”
Ethan didn't fight back.
“I knew this would happen.”
“You knew my daughter would collapse?”
“No.”
“You knew her injector would disappear.”
“I knew someone was trying to make it disappear.”
Richard released him.
“That's not an answer.”
Ethan straightened his jacket.
“My mother told me Olivia was in danger.”
Richard laughed.
“Your mother tried to stop this marriage.”
“I know.”
“She hated my daughter.”
“I know.”
“And you expect me to believe she suddenly became Olivia's guardian angel?”
“No.”
“Then explain the phone call.”
Ethan closed his eyes.
“My mother believed someone inside the family was planning to kill Olivia.”
Silence.
Richard stared.
“Who?”
“We didn't know.”
“You're telling me your family suspected murder and you still married my daughter without telling me?”
“I tried.”
“When?”
“Three weeks ago.”
Richard remembered the argument he had had with Ethan at the club.
Ethan had looked nervous.
Richard had assumed it was wedding anxiety.
“What did you try to tell me?”
“That Olivia needed protection.”
“Why?”
Ethan looked toward the hospital room.
“Because my father died under suspicious circumstances.”
Richard frowned.
“Your father died of a heart attack.”
“That is what the report says.”
Ethan reached into his pocket.
He pulled out a folded photograph.
Richard opened it.
A middle-aged man lay unconscious on a hospital bed.
There were bruises around his wrist.
Richard looked up.
“What happened?”
Ethan's voice was low.
“My father told me, two days before he died, that someone in the family was stealing money.”
“Who?”
“He never said.”
“And the insurance policy?”
Ethan exhaled.
“That was part of the protection plan.”
Richard frowned.
“Explain.”
“I took out the policy so Olivia's estate would be financially protected if something happened to her.”
“Why would she need financial protection from you?”
“Because my family controls the trust.”
Richard looked at him sharply.
“What trust?”
“The Bellamy Trust.”
Richard froze.
He knew that name.
The Cole family had built its fortune through the Bellamy hospitality empire.
Hotels.
Restaurants.
Private clubs.
Real estate.
The Grand Bellamy itself was worth hundreds of millions.
“What does Olivia have to do with the trust?”
Ethan hesitated.
“Everything.”
Richard's stomach tightened.
“Start at the beginning.”
Ethan lowered his voice.
“My father changed the inheritance agreement six months before his death.”
“How?”
“He added Olivia's name.”
Richard stared.
“My daughter wasn't even married to you.”
“I know.”
“Why?”
Ethan reached into his coat.
He pulled out a document.
Richard read the first paragraph.
Then the second.
His hands began to shake.
Olivia had been named beneficiary of a hidden charitable trust worth twenty-three million dollars.
Richard looked up.
“Why would your father leave this to my daughter?”
Ethan shook his head.
“He didn't explain.”
“Did Evelyn know?”
“Yes.”
“And she wanted Olivia dead because of it?”
“I don't know.”
Richard studied him.
“You know more than you're saying.”
Ethan looked toward the hospital room.
“There was another beneficiary.”
“Who?”
“Someone whose name was removed.”
Richard's voice sharpened.
“Who?”
Ethan whispered,
“My brother.”
Richard frowned.
“You don't have a brother.”
Ethan said nothing.
Richard's eyes narrowed.
“You have a brother?”
“Had.”
“What happened?”
“He died when he was nineteen.”
Richard remembered newspaper stories from years ago.
A Cole family boating accident.
Two sons in the headlines.
One survivor.
One body never recovered.
“That was Julian,” Richard whispered.
Ethan nodded.
“He was declared dead.”
“But?”
“But I saw him three years ago.”
Richard felt the room tilt.
“You're saying your dead brother is alive?”
“I’m saying I saw him.”
Before Richard could respond, his phone buzzed.
A message.
Unknown number.
Stop asking questions.
A second message arrived.
Your daughter is not the target. You are.
Richard stared at the screen.
Then the third message arrived.
Ask Olivia what happened six months ago.
His blood ran cold.
He rushed back to the hospital.
Olivia was awake.
She looked at him anxiously.
“Dad?”
Richard shut the door.
“We need to talk.”
“About what?”
“Six months ago.”
Olivia's expression changed.
“What about it?”
“What happened?”
She looked down.
“I don't understand.”
“Someone just messaged me.”
“Who?”
“Someone who knows about your marriage.”
Olivia's lips trembled.
“Dad…”
“You've been hiding something.”
She said nothing.
Richard sat beside her.
“Please.”
Olivia closed her eyes.
Then she whispered,
“Six months ago, I met someone.”
“Who?”
“I thought he was dead.”
Richard's heart stopped.
“Who?”
Olivia looked toward the door.
Then she said the name.
“Julian Cole.”
May you like
Richard stared at her.
And somewhere beyond the hospital corridor, a security camera flickered off.
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