PART 4 — MY GRANDFATHER KNEW
I read the letter three times.
I still couldn't understand it.
My grandfather had known.
Not about Aaron specifically.
About something.
Something that made him prepare for the possibility that I would marry a man connected to Prescott Global.
The letter continued.
There are people who will approach you because of your name. Some will pretend to love you. Some will even convince themselves that they do. But they will always want something you possess.
My hands trembled.
Then came the sentence that made my stomach turn.
If you ever marry someone connected to the Prescott family, do not give them control of your financial affairs.
I stopped reading.
Aaron had been connected to the Prescott family.
My grandfather had warned me.
Years before I knew him.
Why?
I immediately called Nathan.
He told me to come to his office.
I arrived twenty minutes later.
He read the letter silently.
Then he placed it on the desk.
“This changes things.”
“How?”
“We need to investigate Aaron's history.”
“Can we?”
“We can investigate information relevant to the marriage and your assets.”
He opened his laptop.
“Give me his employment history.”
I did.
He searched.
Then frowned.
“What?”
“Aaron changed departments three times in eighteen months before he met you.”
“So?”
“His first position was corporate acquisitions.”
I remembered the photograph.
“Then?”
“Private investment analysis.”
My stomach tightened.
“And then?”
Nathan looked at me.
“Family strategy.”
“Family strategy?”
“That's an unusual title.”
He continued searching.
Then he found something.
A corporate filing.
Prescott Global had created a private advisory division.
One of its purposes was identifying companies suitable for acquisition.
My grandfather's company had been on that list.
But the acquisition never happened.
“Why?” I asked.
Nathan opened another file.
“Because your grandfather sold the company.”
I stared at him.
“He sold it?”
“Yes.”
“To whom?”
Nathan turned the screen toward me.
Prescott Global.
My mouth went dry.
“That can't be.”
“It happened two years before your wedding.”
I stared at the document.
My grandfather's company had been acquired by Prescott Global.
But then…
why had he left me control?
Nathan kept reading.
“Wait.”
“What?”
“There was a second transaction.”
He clicked again.
A shell company had purchased a controlling portion of the acquired assets.
The owner was hidden.
Nathan looked at me.
“Claire…”
“What?”
“The beneficial owner is you.”
I couldn't speak.
My grandfather had sold the company.
Then secretly transferred the real controlling interest to me.
Which meant something else.
Aaron's family company had been operating with an asset…
that technically belonged to me.
And Aaron may have known.
My phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered.
“Hello?”
A man's voice whispered:
“Stop looking into your grandfather.”
I froze.
“Who is this?”
“You don't understand what you're dealing with.”
“Who are you?”
The line went dead.
Nathan stood.
“Call the police.”
“Not yet.”
“Claire.”
“I need to know why.”
My phone rang again.
This time, a text.
A photograph.
Aaron.
Standing with a man I recognized.
His father.
The message beneath it contained only four words.
Ask Aaron about Marcus Hale.
Nathan saw the photograph.
“Who's Marcus Hale?”
“I don't know.”
The next morning, I found out.
Marcus Hale had been Prescott Global's former chief financial officer.
He had disappeared six years earlier.
Officially, he had resigned.
Unofficially…
he had vanished.
Nathan found a newspaper article.
Marcus Hale had been investigating financial irregularities inside Prescott Global before he disappeared.
Then another article.
His wife had filed a missing-person report.
Then another.
A court document.
Marcus had left behind a statement accusing senior executives of manipulating company acquisitions.
One company was mentioned repeatedly.
My grandfather's company.
I felt sick.
“This isn't about my divorce anymore,” I whispered.
“No,” Nathan said.
“It never was.”
That afternoon, Aaron came to Nathan's office.
I refused to see him.
But he left a message.
Claire, please. Before you destroy everything, listen to me. I didn't know what my father was planning.
I stared at the message.
Then another arrived.
I married you because I loved you. That part was real.
I almost believed him.
Then the third message appeared.
But there is something about your grandfather's death that you were never told.
My hands went cold.
I called Aaron.
He answered immediately.
“What happened to my grandfather?”
Silence.
Then he whispered:
“His death wasn't an accident.”
My heart stopped.
“What are you saying?”
“I found evidence six months after we married.”
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because your grandfather's files implicated my father.”
I closed my eyes.
“And Jasmine?”
Aaron didn't answer.
“Aaron?”
“She wasn't my mistress.”
I stared at the wall.
“What?”
“Jasmine has been helping me.”
“Helping you with what?”
“To find the person who ordered your grandfather's death.”
The room went silent.
I couldn't breathe.
Then Aaron said:
“And Claire…”
“What?”
“Your grandfather didn't leave you that trust because he expected you to marry me.”
He paused.
“He left it because he knew someone would eventually try to take everything from you.”
I whispered:
“Who?”
Aaron's voice dropped.
“My father.”
