Chapter 2 - MY BEST FRIEND OWNED HALF THE TRAP
Maren had spent eleven years knowing everything about me.
My college boyfriend.
My father's death.
My first miscarriage.
The fact that I slept with the hallway light on when Gavin traveled.
She even knew where my grandmother's deed was stored.
Now I knew why that mattered.
The next morning, Maren texted me.
Brunch tomorrow? I want one last girls' day before baby chaos.
I stared at the message.
Then I typed:
Absolutely.
June watched me.
“You're terrifying.”
“Good.”
For twelve days, I acted normal.
I kissed Gavin goodnight.
I asked about work.
I complained about swollen ankles.
I even let Maren rub my belly while she sat in my kitchen wearing the bracelet I had bought her for her thirtieth birthday.
Meanwhile, Claire investigated.
Westhaven Residential Holdings had not just been created to hold my house.
It had debts.
A lot of them.
Nearly $700,000.
Gavin had borrowed money using anticipated ownership of my property as collateral.
“He can't pledge something he doesn't own,” I said.
“He shouldn't be able to,” Claire replied.
That word bothered me.
Shouldn't.
We discovered a preliminary loan application.
Someone had attached a valuation report for my home.
Someone had also attached a copy of my driver's license.
And my electronic signature.
“That's not mine.”
Claire nodded.
“I know.”
“How?”
“The date.”
I looked closer.
The signature had supposedly been completed at 2:14 p.m. on March 7.
I remembered March 7.
I had been in the hospital.
Dehydration and contractions.
Gavin had sat beside my bed for six hours.
Or so I thought.
I requested my phone-location history.
At 2:14, my phone had been inside St. Matthew's Hospital.
The electronic signature had originated from an IP address sixteen miles away.
Maren's apartment.
Forgery.
It wasn't just betrayal anymore.
It was fraud.
The baby shower suddenly stopped feeling like revenge.
It became a strategy.
Thirty-two guests would be present.
Both families.
Neighbors.
Coworkers.
Witnesses.
I wanted Gavin and Maren to believe I knew only about the affair.
I didn't want them running before Claire could finish tracing the money.
So at the shower, I exposed just enough.
The pregnancy.
The affair.
The messages about the house.
Not the legal investigation.
Not the loan.
Not the forged signature.
When Gavin demanded we go inside and speak privately, I smiled.
“No.”
His face changed.
“You're embarrassing yourself.”
That sentence almost made me laugh.
“Interesting choice of words.”
My mother stood.
“Gavin, leave.”
“This is my home.”
I looked at him.
“No, actually. That's one of the things we're about to clarify.”
His eyes flicked toward Maren.
Tiny movement.
Huge answer.
He knew exactly what I meant.
Then my phone buzzed.
Claire.
I opened the message.
Do not let Gavin access your desk, safe, or computer.
I typed:
Why?
Her reply arrived instantly.
May you like
Because I found another document.
Your unborn daughter is listed as collateral.
