Chapter 7 - THE GIFT I NEVER RECEIVED
Robert looked older after I told him.
“We gave him eighty-seven thousand dollars.”
“I received five.”
“No.”
His voice cracked.
“We wired the full amount.”
Daniel stood up.
“It wasn’t that simple.”
Margaret turned toward him.
“Then explain it.”
He couldn’t.
Five years earlier, our kitchen had flooded after a pipe burst.
Insurance covered part of the damage.
Daniel told me his parents had generously contributed five thousand dollars toward the repairs.
I had written Margaret a thank-you letter.
She had never mentioned the amount because she assumed I knew.
The remaining eighty-two thousand dollars had disappeared.
Now we knew where at least some of it went.
DNB Property Ventures.
Daniel claimed it had been an investment intended for “our future.”
I asked what the company owned.
“Nothing yet.”
“Eighteen months and eighty-two thousand dollars later?”
“There were setup costs.”
Robert stared at him.
“For a company with no property?”
Daniel’s mouth tightened.
Then I remembered the storage unit.
“What’s in Unit 417?”
He froze.
Margaret saw it.
“So that matters.”
“It’s business inventory.”
“What kind?”
Daniel looked at me.
“Furniture.”
“For what property?”
No answer.
The next morning, my attorney obtained information through the storage company’s legal contact after verifying the joint billing source.
We did not open the unit.
We didn’t need to.
The stored inventory declaration already listed what was inside.
Beds.
Dining furniture.
Kitchenware.
Children’s furniture.
A crib.
I stared at the screen.
“A crib?”
My attorney nodded.
Maybe it meant nothing.
Maybe Daniel was furnishing a rental unit.
Then Vanessa called.
Her voice sounded shaken.
“Emily, I need to ask you something.”
“What?”
“Did Daniel ever tell you he wanted children?”
The question hit like a fist.
Daniel and I had tried for years.
Two miscarriages.
Then doctors recommended we take a break.
After the second loss, Daniel told me he wasn’t sure he ever wanted to try again.
He said the grief was too much.
I had respected that.
“Why are you asking?”
Vanessa began crying.
“Because he told me you never wanted children.”
I closed my eyes.
Of course he did.
“He said that was one of the reasons your marriage failed.”
“Our marriage wasn’t failing.”
She breathed shakily.
Then came the part I was not prepared for.
“I’m pregnant.”
Everything around me disappeared.
“How far?”
“Ten weeks.”
Ten weeks.
October.
The hotel.
The hand-holding.
The jewelry.
The sudden urgency around refinancing.
“Does Daniel know?”
“Yes.”
“For how long?”
“Since Thanksgiving.”
I sat down.
That explained the crib.
The apartment.
The business.
The need to make me sign quickly.
Daniel wasn’t planning some distant future.
He was preparing for a baby.
Vanessa whispered, “I’m sorry.”
I didn’t answer.
Then she said something else.
“Emily, there’s more.”
I almost laughed.
There was always more.
“Daniel told me the loan was for the baby.”
“What?”
“He said you offered to help him start over because you felt guilty about the divorce.”
I stared at the wall.
May you like
Vanessa’s next words turned my sadness into something much more dangerous.
“He said you were giving us the house money as part of the settlement.”
