Chapter 7 - MY SISTER CAME HOMENatalie arrived at my parents' house at 2:13 in the morning.
Barefoot.
No purse.
No car.
My mother called me.
“Claire, you need to come.”
“I don't.”
“Please.”
I almost said no.
Then Mom whispered:
“She's terrified.”
Thirty minutes later, I walked into the house where Natalie and I had grown up.
She sat on the living room sofa wrapped in Dad's old college sweatshirt.
Her orange anniversary dress was gone.
Her makeup was gone.
The confidence was gone.
She looked younger.
Almost like the sister I remembered.
Almost.
Dad stood near the fireplace.
Mom sat beside Natalie.
Nobody knew what to say.
I remained standing.
Natalie looked at me.
“I left him.”
“You weren't living with him.”
“I've been staying there since the party.”
Of course she had.
Our marriage bed wasn't even cold.
“Why are you here?”
Mom said, “Claire.”
“No. She called me. I want to know.”
Natalie swallowed.
“He got angry.”
“Did he hurt you?”
“No.”
The answer came quickly.
I studied her.
“Did he threaten you?”
She looked down.
“Yes.”
Dad turned.
“What did he say?”
Natalie hugged herself.
“He said I've ruined everything.”
“How?”
“Because I told Claire about the paternity papers.”
She looked at me.
“He checked my phone.”
“What else?”
“He said if I don't sign, he'll cut me off.”
I almost laughed.
“You're surprised?”
Tears filled her eyes.
“I thought he loved me.”
“So did I.”
That silenced the room.
Natalie lowered her face.
Mom began rubbing her back.
I hated how angry that made me.
“Nobody rubbed my back when you were sleeping with my husband.”
Mom looked at me.
“Claire, please.”
“Why? Because she's pregnant?”
“Because she's your sister.”
“So was I.”
Natalie flinched as though I'd slapped her.
Good.
I wanted the words to hurt.
Then she whispered, “You're right.”
I wasn't ready for that.
She looked up.
“You're right about everything.”
“No, I'm not.”
“Yes.”
“I didn't come here for an apology.”
“I know.”
“Then don't give me one because you're scared.”
Her chin trembled.
“I started seeing Eric eleven months ago.”
Dad closed his eyes.
Mom began crying.
I remained still.
“Tell me.”
Natalie took a breath.
“It started after Thanksgiving.”
I remembered.
Our family had spent Thanksgiving at our house.
Eric had stayed up late drinking bourbon with Natalie after everyone left.
I went to bed.
The next morning, Natalie had been gone.
“He messaged me afterward,” she continued. “Said he felt guilty.”
“How touching.”
“He said your marriage had been over emotionally for years.”
I laughed.
It sounded ugly.
“He said you treated him like an employee.”
“And that justified sleeping with my sister?”
“No.”
“But you believed him.”
“I wanted to.”
There it was.
The first honest thing she had said.
“He made me feel chosen,” Natalie whispered.
“You were chosen. For something.”
She looked at me.
“He started talking about leaving you.”
“When?”
“December.”
Two months into the affair.
“He said you controlled everything. The company. The money. The house.”
“That bothered you?”
“At first, no.”
“At first.”
She wiped her face.
“Then he said after the divorce, he'd finally have what was his.”
Dad stepped forward.
“What exactly did he tell you?”
Natalie hesitated.
“That he owned half the company.”
“Did you know he was moving company money?”
“No.”
I stared at her.
She looked away.
“Natalie.”
“I knew he had investments.”
“With our company funds?”
“I didn't know where the money came from.”
“That is not the same as not asking.”
Her shoulders collapsed.
“No.”
“Did you know he was planning to leave me financially weakened?”
A long silence.
“Yes.”
Mom whispered her name.
Natalie started sobbing.
“I didn't understand what it meant.”
“You understood enough to plan your new house.”
“I know.”
“You understood enough to accept a condo.”
“I know.”
“You understood enough to announce your pregnancy in front of three hundred people.”
She covered her face.
“I hated you.”
The room froze.
Oddly, that confession hurt less than the excuses.
I pulled out a chair and sat across from her.
“Why?”
She looked at me through tears.
“Because everything worked for you.”
I almost couldn't believe it.
“Worked for me?”
“Grandma trusted you.”
“Because I took care of her.”
“Dad respected you.”
“Because I worked for it.”
“You had the business. The marriage. The house. Everyone always called you responsible and called me a mess.”
“That wasn't my doing.”
“No. But I made it yours.”
Her voice cracked.
“I spent my whole life thinking if you had something, it meant there was less left for me.”
I looked at my little sister.
For years, I had rescued her because I thought helping was love.
Maybe every rescue had also taught her that I possessed something she lacked.
Still, envy didn't absolve betrayal.
“You don't get forgiveness because you've explained the motive.”
“I know.”
“Good.”
She nodded.
“I'll testify.”
That surprised me.
“Against Eric?”
“Yes.”
“You understand what that could expose you to?”
“Yes.”
“You could be sued.”
“I know.”
“You may have to return the condo.”
“I don't want it.”
“The car.”
“Take it.”
“The money.”
“Whatever is left.”
I studied her.
“What changed?”
She placed a hand over her stomach.
“This.”
The baby moved beneath her palm.
Her expression softened.
“Until two nights ago, I thought I was building a family.”
“And now?”
“Now I think I was building a trap.”
She looked at Daniel, who had quietly joined us after I called.
“What happens if Eric isn't the father?”
Daniel answered carefully.
“The legal consequences depend on many factors. But the financial plan we found would certainly be affected.”
Natalie nodded.
“He needs the baby to be his.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Daniel looked at me before answering.
I nodded.
“Because Eric structured Northlight's family trust so his biological child becomes successor beneficiary.”
Natalie stared.
“He told me that was about protecting us.”
“It's also useful if he needs to move assets beyond a spouse's claim,” Daniel said.
She turned pale.
“But if the baby isn't his…”
“He loses that structure.”
Natalie began trembling.
“What?”
“I know who the other possible father is.”
“Your ex?”
She shook her head.
“No.”
I frowned.
“You told me it was your ex.”
“I lied.”
Even now.
I nearly stood.
“I'm done.”
“Wait.”
“Who?”
Natalie's eyes filled again.
“Someone Eric knows.”
I sat back down.
“Who?”
She took a breath.
“Mark Dalton.”
I knew the name.
Everyone in our industry knew the name.
Mark Dalton was Eric's college friend.
More importantly, Mark was the man whose company had received nearly $600,000 in suspicious payments from Bennett Heritage.
Daniel went completely still.
“When were you with him?”
“About six months ago.”
“Once?”
Natalie looked down.
“Three times.”
“Did Eric know?”
“No.”
Daniel stood.
He began pacing.
I understood why.
If Mark was tied to Northlight…
And Mark might be the baby's father…
Then the affair triangle wasn't just personal.
It connected directly to the money.
Daniel stopped.
“Claire.”
“I know.”
“No, I don't think you do.”
He opened his laptop.
“Mark Dalton's company received the largest transfers from Eric.”
“Yes.”
“What if those weren't fake vendor payments?”
“What else?”
Daniel looked at Natalie.
“What if Eric wasn't paying Mark for services?”
My stomach tightened.
“What if he was paying him to hold something?”
Natalie's face went white.
May you like
She whispered:
“Or paying him to disappear.”
Related Stories
