Chapter 11 - THE HUSBAND WHO PLANNED EVERYTHING
Camden Reed had spent months pretending he was the victim of a difficult marriage.
He told friends I was cold.
Unreasonable.
Too attached to my family's money.
He complained that I refused to support his business ambitions.
And whenever I confronted him about Sloane, he accused me of being jealous and controlling.
Now the evidence suggested he had personally submitted forged trust documents.
He wasn't a confused husband manipulated by his mistress.
He had made deliberate choices.
I sat beside Vivian in her office, reviewing the filing records.
"How did he get the die?"
Vivian opened a photograph.
It showed Camden entering a private document services company.
A small navy box rested beneath his arm.
The date matched Rosa's account.
Two days later, the forged authorization was filed.
I stared.
"He did it."
Vivian nodded.
"The evidence strongly suggests he participated."
I looked down.
For months, I'd blamed Sloane for everything.
Her arrogance.
Her cruelty.
Her determination to humiliate me.
But Camden was my husband.
He was the one who promised to love me.
The one who knew my family history.
The one who had access to the safe.
Sloane owed me basic decency.
Camden owed me loyalty.
And he'd chosen betrayal.
My phone vibrated.
Camden.
I stared at the screen.
Then answered.
"Nora."
His voice sounded exhausted.
"We need to talk."
"Through our attorneys."
"Please."
I closed my eyes.
"What do you want?"
He hesitated.
"Sloane left me."
For a moment, I said nothing.
Then I almost laughed.
"Did she?"
"Her father found out about the investigation."
I looked toward Vivian.
She was listening carefully.
Camden continued.
"He says the wedding can't happen."
I stared at the phone.
"Camden, you're still married to me."
"I know."
For the first time, he sounded ashamed.
"I made a terrible mistake."
I looked down at the wedding ring I'd removed days earlier.
"No."
He went quiet.
"You made a series of choices."
His breathing changed.
"Nora..."
"You lied."
"I know."
"You cheated."
"I know."
"You forged documents to take control of my family's property."
He began crying.
"I was desperate."
I felt something strange.
Not satisfaction.
Not revenge.
Just sadness.
He'd destroyed our marriage chasing a life he believed was better than the one we had.
And now that life was falling apart.
"Camden, you need an attorney."
He swallowed.
"Can you forgive me?"
I closed my eyes.
"Someday, perhaps."
Hope entered his voice.
"Then maybe we can—"
I interrupted gently.
"No."
Silence.
I continued.
"Forgiveness doesn't mean I have to remain your wife."
He began crying harder.
I hung up.
For several minutes, I sat silently.
Then Vivian placed another document before me.
"Nora, there's something else."
I looked up.
"What?"
"We traced the financial arrangements behind the proposed Harbor House purchase."
My stomach tightened.
"And?"
"Harrison Voss wasn't going to pay forty-eight million dollars himself."
I frowned.
"Who was?"
Vivian turned the page.
A funding agreement appeared.
The lender was a company controlled by Camden.
I stared.
"How?"
Vivian's expression darkened.
"Camden planned to borrow against assets he expected to gain through the forged authorization."
I felt sick.
"He was going to use my property to finance its own purchase."
Vivian nodded.
And suddenly, I understood the most humiliating part of the entire scheme.
Camden hadn't planned to marry Sloane because he loved her.
May you like
He planned to use her father's company to steal Harbor House.
Then walk away with the money.
