Chapter 7 - THE THREAT SHE NEVER TOLD ME ABOUT
I didn’t speak.
I couldn’t.
Rachel had been threatened while carrying my son.
And I had been complaining that she was “emotionally distant.”
“What exactly did Victor say?”
“He said people around you were dangerous.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I tried.”
That answer again.
I looked away.
She continued.
“The first time, you were on a call with Singapore. The second time, you said Victor had saved your company and I was being paranoid.”
Memory hit me so hard I felt physically ill.
Rachel had mentioned Victor becoming too involved.
I had defended him.
Not once.
Repeatedly.
“He told me if I divorced you quietly, he’d make sure I never had to worry about money.”
“You thought leaving me would protect Owen.”
“I thought reducing our connection to Cole Dynamics might make us less valuable.”
I sat beside her.
“You never wanted the divorce?”
She closed her eyes.
“I wanted you to notice I was disappearing.”
That hurt more than anything Victor had done.
“But by the time I filed, yes. I wanted it.”
I nodded.
She deserved the truth from me too.
“I don’t want to use Victor as an excuse for what happened between us.”
Rachel looked surprised.
“He threatened you. He manipulated us. But I still missed appointments. I still ignored you. I still made work more important than our marriage.”
Her eyes filled.
“That’s the first thing you’ve said that makes me believe you might actually understand.”
I didn’t reach for her.
I wanted to.
Instead I asked, “What do you need from me now?”
Rachel looked down at Owen.
“Consistency.”
Not love.
Not promises.
Not money.
Consistency.
I nodded.
“I can do that.”
“We’ll see.”
It was fair.
Two hours later, Owen’s monitor alarmed.
His heart rate spiked.
Nurses rushed in.
Rachel panicked.
I froze for half a second.
Then I stayed beside her.
Not fixing.
Not calling anyone.
Just holding her hand while doctors worked.
Owen stabilized quickly.
The cardiologist later explained that the episode was concerning but manageable.
More testing would determine whether medication was needed.
I barely slept.
At dawn, Claire arrived.
“You need to see this.”
She handed me security footage from Cole Dynamics headquarters.
Victor had entered my private office at 3:12 A.M.
He used an executive override key.
“What did he take?”
“We don’t know yet.”
Then Claire showed me a second video.
Victor leaving with a black document case.
Rachel looked at the screen.
“I’ve seen that case.”
“Where?”
“My father had one exactly like it.”
Claire zoomed in.
A small silver plate was visible on the handle.
H.B.
Harold Bennett.
May you like
Victor had stolen something from my office that had belonged to Rachel’s father.
Something I didn’t even know I had.
