Chapter 16: The Secret They Were Hiding

For several seconds, nobody moved.

The document remained on the table between us.

Once Claire is out of the picture, everything becomes easier.

Grant's words.

And beneath them, Evan's reply.

I read it again.

Then a third time.

Grant looked pale.

Tessa had stopped crying.

Even my lawyer seemed surprised by what she was seeing.

The property representative cleared his throat.

“This message was recovered from an archived account connected to the original application.”

Grant finally spoke.

“That conversation doesn't mean what you think it means.”

I looked at him.

“Then tell me what it means.”

He opened his mouth.

Nothing came out.

Evan's reply sat beneath his message.

You promised she would never know.

My stomach tightened.

Never know what?

I looked at Grant.

For the first time since I had known him, he looked genuinely cornered.

“Grant?” Tessa whispered.

He didn't look at her.

The representative continued.

“There are additional messages in the archive. We haven't reviewed all of them yet.”

Grant stood abruptly.

“This meeting is over.”

My lawyer immediately said, “Sit down.”

He stared at her.

She didn't blink.

“You can leave if you want,” she said calmly. “But the investigation will continue without your cooperation.”

Grant slowly sat back down.

I watched him.

He wasn't angry anymore.

He was afraid.

And that frightened me more than his anger ever had.

Tessa turned toward him.

“What did you promise Evan?”

Grant finally looked at her.

“Not now.”

“No.” Her voice shook. “You don't get to say that anymore.”

He frowned.

“Tessa—”

“You told me Evan was obsessed with destroying you.”

She wiped her cheeks.

“You told me he was dangerous.”

Grant said nothing.

“Was any of that true?”

The room fell silent.

Then Grant said something I never expected.

“Not all of it.”

Tessa stared at him.

So did I.

“What does that mean?” she asked.

Grant rubbed both hands over his face.

“Evan knew about the company accounts.”

My lawyer leaned forward.

“What company accounts?”

Grant hesitated.

“There were financial irregularities.”

The representative exchanged a glance with my lawyer.

“Explain.”

Grant swallowed.

“Some expenses were being moved between departments.”

“By whom?”

He didn't answer.

I already knew.

The same man who had always told me he was too busy.

The same man who had spent months preparing for Boston while telling me we were saving for our wedding.

The same man who had built a spreadsheet for my entire future.

Grant had always loved numbers.

Apparently, he loved moving them too.

Tessa looked horrified.

“You told me you were leaving Chicago because of a promotion.”

“I was.”

“Was the promotion real?”

Grant looked away.

That was enough.

Tessa stood.

“You lied to me.”

“Tessa, sit down.”

“You lied to everyone.”

Her voice cracked.

“You told me Boston was our fresh start.”

Grant's expression hardened.

“It was.”

“Then why did you need Claire's financial information?”

Silence.

I knew the answer before he said it.

“Because the Boston apartment required a stronger financial profile.”

My lawyer immediately asked, “And why didn't you use your own?”

Grant looked at the floor.

The representative answered for him.

“Because his credit profile did not meet the requirements.”

I felt something inside me settle.

So that was it.

The man who had told me I needed stability couldn't provide it himself.

He had needed my stability.

My credit.

My income.

My savings.

My reputation.

Everything he claimed I lacked.

I looked at him.

“You needed me.”

He didn't answer.

“All those years, you told me I needed you.”

Still nothing.

“But you needed me to make your life work.”

Grant's eyes finally met mine.

“Claire, please.”

I shook my head.

“Don't.”

He stopped.

For once, he listened.

The representative gathered the documents.

“We'll provide copies of the relevant records to all parties. The investigation will continue.”

The meeting ended shortly afterward.

Tessa left without looking at Grant.

I remained seated.

My lawyer touched my arm.

“Are you okay?”

I thought about it.

“I'm angry.”

She nodded.

“That's okay.”

I stood.

Grant was waiting near the door.

“Claire.”

I stopped but didn't turn around.

“I never meant for things to go this far.”

I closed my eyes.

There was the sentence I had expected.

Not I was wrong.

Not I'm sorry.

Just an admission that the consequences had exceeded his expectations.

I turned around.

“How far did you mean for them to go?”

He looked at me.

I waited.

“I wanted you safe.”

I almost laughed.

“Safe?”

“Iowa was safe.”

“For me?”

He hesitated.

“For everyone.”

I shook my head.

“You still don't understand.”

I stepped closer.

“I wasn't your responsibility.”

His expression changed.

“I was your fiancée.”

“Exactly.”

I held his gaze.

“You were supposed to build a future with me, not build one around me.”

He looked down.

I walked past him.

Outside the office, the afternoon sun was brighter than I expected.

My phone buzzed.

A message from an unknown number.

I stopped walking.

There was only one sentence.

You finally know enough to see why Grant was desperate to leave Chicago.

Then another message arrived.

But you still don't know who helped him cover it up.

I stared at the screen.

The number disappeared before I could respond.

I immediately forwarded the messages to my lawyer.

She called me within seconds.

“Claire, don't answer anything else.”

“I won't.”

“We're going to need to look into Grant's employment records too.”

I looked back at the office building.

For years, I had believed Grant's biggest secret was another woman.

I had been wrong.

Tessa hadn't been the beginning.

She had been part of the plan.

And now I had to find out what Grant had been running from long before Boston ever appeared on his spreadsheet.