Chapter 7 - THE LIE HE COULDN'T EXPLAIN
Eliam turned off his phone and slipped it into his pocket.
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
Then he pulled out a chair and sat down.
"I wasn't having an affair," he said.
I hadn't accused him of one.
That was the first thing I noticed.
"What were you doing, Eliam?"
He looked at his hands.
"Vanessa and Daniel came to me with an investment proposal. They said there was a way to generate returns from your family's assets without selling anything."
"How did they know about my trust?"
"Your father mentioned it years ago."
"To you?"
"Yes."
I waited.
Eliam swallowed.
"They told me you knew about the arrangement. They said you were hesitant because you didn't understand the financial side, and they wanted me to help explain it."
"Then why lie about going to work?"
His silence answered before he did.
"Because I knew you'd be upset when you saw the paperwork."
I felt something inside me go cold.
"You knew I hadn't signed it."
He shook his head quickly.
"I thought the authorization was temporary. They said the lender only needed preliminary documentation."
"Someone copied my signature."
"I didn't know they'd done that."
"Then why did you keep going back?"
He stared at the table.
"Because I signed something too."
He admitted that Daniel had persuaded him to sign a preliminary guarantee, claiming it would help secure a short-term business loan.
Eliam had recently invested in a small consulting venture that was struggling financially.
He'd hidden those losses from me because he was ashamed.
Daniel had promised that the loan would cover Eliam's debts and leave enough money to expand the business.
I listened without interrupting.
"How much debt?"
He rubbed his face.
"About eighty thousand dollars."
The amount hurt, but the deception hurt more.
"Did you know my house was being used as collateral?"
"Not at first."
"And when did you find out?"
He closed his eyes.
"Three days ago."
Three days.
He'd had three days to tell me the truth.
Instead, he'd kissed me goodbye each morning and pretended everything was normal.
I stood up.
"Sleep in the guest room."
He looked at me as though I'd struck him.
"Please. I made a mistake."
"No," I said quietly. "You made several decisions. Now I need time to decide what they mean."
As I walked upstairs, he called after me.
"There's something else you should know."
May you like
I stopped at the landing.
"Daniel told me the trust was only the beginning."
