We left the cathedral through a side entrance.<\/p>\n
No photographs.<\/p>\n
No congratulations.<\/p>\n
No reception line.<\/p>\n
Just cold air and a parking lot full of cars.<\/p>\n
Lisa sat in the back seat beside Megan.<\/p>\n
Brandon drove.<\/p>\n
I sat beside him in the front.<\/p>\n
For several minutes, none of us spoke.<\/p>\n
The silence was not angry.<\/p>\n
It was exhausted.<\/p>\n
Finally Brandon said, \u201cI need to tell you something.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo do I.\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen you first.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked out the window.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
He glanced at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I don't know what your mother found.\u201d<\/p>\n
He tightened his grip on the steering wheel.<\/p>\n
\u201cNeither do I.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen maybe we should find out.\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
At the hotel, we gathered in the suite.<\/p>\n
Megan brought coffee.<\/p>\n
Lisa changed out of her dress and curled up on the sofa with her stuffed rabbit.<\/p>\n
Brandon placed the phone from the wedding dress on the table.<\/p>\n
He had already taken photographs of everything on it.<\/p>\n
The messages.<\/p>\n
The investigator's reports.<\/p>\n
The payments.<\/p>\n
The names.<\/p>\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are things here about your past.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew?\u201d<\/p>\n
I nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
I hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough.\u201d<\/p>\n
He sat across from me.<\/p>\n
\u201cEmily, what is in the blue folder?\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart stopped.<\/p>\n
Megan looked at me.<\/p>\n
She knew.<\/p>\n
Brandon noticed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou both know about it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Megan shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know there is a folder. I don't know what's inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon looked back at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy did you never tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
I stood.<\/p>\n
I walked to my suitcase.<\/p>\n
I opened the front compartment.<\/p>\n
Beneath a sweater was a thin blue folder.<\/p>\n
I carried it to the table.<\/p>\n
Brandon stared at it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe reason your mother has been trying to destroy this marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n
He did not touch it.<\/p>\n
\u201cOpen it.\u201d<\/p>\n
I did.<\/p>\n
The first page was a court document.<\/p>\n
The second was a bank statement.<\/p>\n
The third was an old newspaper clipping.<\/p>\n
Brandon looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou will.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned another page.<\/p>\n
There was a photograph.<\/p>\n
A man standing beside a car.<\/p>\n
Brandon frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy ex-husband.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told me he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why is he in this folder?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause your mother believes he left something behind.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon leaned forward.<\/p>\n
I placed the next document on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe didn't leave me money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he leave?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDebt.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon stared at the papers.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd the bank statements?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI spent years paying off what he owed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn't you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause it was finished.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why would my mother care?\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed the folder.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause she thinks the debt wasn't the real story.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon's expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does she think?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe thinks my ex-husband stole money from your family's company.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Brandon leaned back.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mother told you that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I found the evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n
I opened the folder again.<\/p>\n
There was an old corporate ledger.<\/p>\n
Several transfers were marked.<\/p>\n
Different names.<\/p>\n
Different accounts.<\/p>\n
But the same dates.<\/p>\n
Brandon studied them.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is Sterling Holdings.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father signed these?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen who did?\u201d<\/p>\n
I pointed to a name.<\/p>\n
Barbara's name.<\/p>\n
Brandon stared at it.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't put it there.\u201d<\/p>\n
He read the page again.<\/p>\n
The transfers were small enough to avoid attention.<\/p>\n
But they happened repeatedly.<\/p>\n
Over several years.<\/p>\n
He turned another page.<\/p>\n
There were copies of correspondence.<\/p>\n
A lawyer's letter.<\/p>\n
A bank notice.<\/p>\n
A settlement agreement.<\/p>\n
Brandon's face became pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would she do this?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a theory.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTell me.\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed the folder.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe wanted to keep control of the family trust.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon sat silently.<\/p>\n
Megan spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cEmily, there is something else.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe phone.\u201d<\/p>\n
She picked it up.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are files that haven't been opened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon unlocked it.<\/p>\n
One folder contained recordings.<\/p>\n
Another contained photographs.<\/p>\n
The newest file had been created two days earlier.<\/p>\n
He played it.<\/p>\n
Barbara's voice filled the room.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you she would marry him.\u201d<\/p>\n
A man's voice answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cI still don't understand what you want.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI want Brandon to leave her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd if he doesn't?\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen we use the evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon stopped the recording.<\/p>\n
He stared at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is that man?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
He played the rest.<\/p>\n
The man's voice said, \u201cYou could destroy her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara replied, \u201cThat is the point.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lisa stirred on the sofa.<\/p>\n
We lowered our voices.<\/p>\n
The recording continued.<\/p>\n
Barbara mentioned the blue folder.<\/p>\n
She knew about it.<\/p>\n
She wanted it.<\/p>\n
She believed it contained evidence that could ruin her.<\/p>\n
Brandon looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou carried this to your wedding?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I knew she might try something.\u201d<\/p>\n
He shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn't you trust me?\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause every time I told you something about your mother, you explained it away.\u201d<\/p>\n
He flinched.<\/p>\n
I immediately regretted saying it.<\/p>\n
But it was true.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn't trying to hurt you,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to protect Lisa.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked down.<\/p>\n
Then he reached across the table.<\/p>\n
His hand found mine.<\/p>\n
\u201cI should have listened.\u201d<\/p>\n
I squeezed his fingers.<\/p>\n
Before either of us could say more, someone knocked.<\/p>\n
Megan answered.<\/p>\n
A police officer stood outside.<\/p>\n
He asked for me.<\/p>\n
My heart sank.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at the folder.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you Emily Sterling?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI need to speak with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe is not going anywhere alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat's fine.\u201d<\/p>\n
We entered the hallway.<\/p>\n
Another officer stood beside the elevator.<\/p>\n
The first officer spoke quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere has been a complaint.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAgainst me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProperty damage.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat property?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at Brandon.<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Sterling's home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mother's?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cApproximately two hours ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at the officer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was at the cathedral.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why are you here?\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause the security footage shows someone wearing your clothing entering the property.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
He showed me a photograph.<\/p>\n
A woman in a dark coat.<\/p>\n
From behind.<\/p>\n
Same height.<\/p>\n
Same hair.<\/p>\n
Same dress.<\/p>\n
But I knew immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn't me.\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe're not saying it is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon stared at the photograph.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen who?\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is what we are trying to determine.\u201d<\/p>\n
He handed me a second photograph.<\/p>\n
This one showed the woman entering Barbara's study.<\/p>\n
A minute later, the alarm was triggered.<\/p>\n
The officer continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeveral documents were taken.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat documents?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at the blue folder.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don't know yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brandon's eyes moved to mine.<\/p>\n
The officer asked, \u201cDo you know anyone who might have access to your clothing or personal belongings?\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of the wedding dress.<\/p>\n
The tailor.<\/p>\n
The garment bag.<\/p>\n
Barbara.<\/p>\n
Then something else occurred to me.<\/p>\n
The hotel.<\/p>\n
Someone had entered our room while we were at the cathedral.<\/p>\n
I ran inside.<\/p>\n
Our suitcase was open.<\/p>\n
The blue folder was gone.<\/p>\n
We left the cathedral through a side entrance. No photographs. No congratulations. No reception line. Just cold air and a parking lot full of cars. Lisa sat in the back … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2571,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-readmore"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2578"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2578\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2594,"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2578\/revisions\/2594"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}