Chapter 5 - THE TRUST IN MY DAUGHTER'S NAME
I called Ethan from the boardroom.
He answered immediately.
“Claire.”
“Why is there a Northstar trust in Lily’s name?”
Silence.
I closed my eyes.
“Answer.”
“Who told you?”
“That doesn’t matter.”
“Sophia.”
Not a question.
I hated that he knew.
“How much money is in it?”
“None.”
“Then what does it hold?”
“Rights.”
“What rights?”
“Potential future rights.”
“Stop speaking like a lawyer.”
He exhaled.
“Your father structured Northstar so direct control could pass to a descendant.”
My stomach tightened.
“And you created the trust.”
“Yes.”
“Without telling me.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To protect Lily.”
I laughed bitterly.
“You hit her mother in public.”
Silence.
“That was a mistake.”
“No. Forgetting an anniversary is a mistake. Hitting me was a choice.”
He said nothing.
I continued.
“Did you use marital assets to buy into Bennett’s bid vehicle?”
Another silence.
My hand tightened around the phone.
“How much?”
“Two million.”
My stomach dropped.
“Two million dollars?”
“Investment capital.”
“From where?”
“Our line of credit.”
I nearly stopped breathing.
“Our house?”
“Yes.”
“You borrowed against our home to finance Sophia’s family competing against mine?”
“You weren’t working at Ashbourne.”
“That doesn’t make it normal.”
“It was a business decision.”
Everything Ethan did became a business decision when he wanted to avoid morality.
“Did you plan to tell me?”
“Eventually.”
“When? After Bennett won?”
“Claire—”
“Did you marry me for Northstar?”
The question came out calm.
Too calm.
He went silent.
My chest hurt.
“Ethan.”
“No.”
“Then why did Sophia give you my file before we met?”
His breathing changed.
“She didn’t give me your file.”
“You told me she did.”
“She told me about you.”
“Before Columbia.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“She thought you might know where your father kept the Northstar option.”
The room disappeared.
“And you agreed to meet me.”
“Yes.”
“Because of that.”
“At first.”
There it was.
Not no.
At first.
I stared through the glass walls of the boardroom at London below.
“So our first date…”
“Was real.”
“Was it?”
“Yes.”
“Did you report back to Sophia?”
Silence.
My eyes closed.
“How long?”
“Three months.”
My throat tightened.
“How long did you spy on me?”
“I wasn’t spying.”
“Did you tell Sophia what I said about Ashbourne?”
“Yes.”
“About my father?”
“Yes.”
“About my mother?”
“Yes.”
“About company files?”
A pause.
“Yes.”
I felt numb.
Then he spoke quickly.
“But I stopped.”
“When?”
“After I fell in love with you.”
I almost laughed.
“That’s supposed to help?”
“No.”
“No, Ethan. It doesn’t.”
I ended the call.
Rebecca entered.
“We found the Lily trust.”
She placed documents on the table.
New York.
Offshore trustee.
Created eighteen months ago.
Ethan as protector.
Sophia Bennett as secondary adviser.
My blood went cold.
“Sophia?”
“Yes.”
I read.
There was one more name.
Contingent guardian in the event of both parents becoming unavailable:
Sophia Bennett.
I stopped breathing.
“What?”
Rebecca’s face was pale.
“Claire…”
I kept reading.
If Ethan and I both died or became legally incapacitated, Sophia would gain temporary control over Lily’s inherited Northstar rights.
My hands started shaking.
Then Rebecca turned another page.
A life insurance policy.
Me.
Ten million dollars.
Beneficiary:
Ethan Walker.
I stared.
“Did I sign this?”
Rebecca shook her head.
“No.”
May you like
My signature was there.
But it wasn't mine.
