“Do not go into that room alone,” Thomas told me over the phone. “We are ready to move, but I need your permission to open the secret bank files.”
I stood still by the elevator. “What are you doing, Thomas?”
“Four months ago, my team found missing money in the family trust that pays for the Adams Group,” Thomas said fast. “I did not tell you because you asked me to stay out of your marriage, but tonight, Christopher wants to sign a contract using your money as a promise.”
My sadness turned into pure fear. “I never said he could use my money.”
“I know you didn’t,” Thomas said angrily. “That is why I have auditors, experts, and a judge’s order waiting, so stay there for two minutes.”
Brenda tried to look at her tablet, but her hands were shaking badly. Then, the manager of the hotel walked over with two big security guards.
“Mrs. Harrington Roberts,” the manager said with a respectful bow, “we are very sorry for this mistake, and the private elevator is ready for you.”
Brenda’s face went totally white. “But her name is Roberts.”
“It is my name too,” I said as I walked past her.
I held Emily in my arms inside the elevator, and she put her head on my shoulder. “Mommy, did Daddy hide us because we are poor?”
I had to swallow hard before I could say anything. “We are not poor, my love, but even if we were, nobody has the right to be ashamed of us.”
The big room on the thirtieth floor looked like a luxury magazine picture with white flowers, crystal lights, violin players, and a big screen with the Adams Group logo. Reporters, politicians, and businesspeople filled the room.
Christopher was standing right in the middle.
He wore a beautiful blue tuxedo and a bright smile I had not seen at home in years. To his right was Madeline Sinclair in a red dress and a green necklace, and a ten-year-old boy held his other hand.
Christopher raised his glass to make a toast. “This deal is not just for business growth, because it is the future that Madeline, Jackson, and I will build as a family.”
Everyone in the room clapped loudly.
Emily held my coat tightly as I walked between the tables.
People started whispering when a man recognized me from the old photos Christopher kept in his office. His old mother, Beatrice, stood up quickly.
“What are you doing here?” Beatrice whispered angrily, grabbing my arm. “We told you not to come tonight.”
“You did not ask me anything, Beatrice,” I said loudly. “You just lied to me.”
Christopher turned around and saw me, and his face turned gray. “Abigail, please, we can talk about this downstairs.”
Emily let go of my hand, walked to the front table, and put her glittery box right in front of him. “I made this for you, Daddy, but the lady downstairs said Jackson is the only son you want.”
The whole room went completely silent.
Christopher looked at the cameras, then at the rich investors, and then down at his daughter. “This is not the time for a kid’s tantrum, Emily.”
That cold sentence broke the very last piece of my heart.
Madeline looked confused and turned to Christopher. “Christopher, you told me this girl was just the child of a crazy ex-girlfriend from college.”
“Be quiet, Madeline,” Christopher muttered, wiping sweat from his face.
Just then, my phone buzzed with a text from Thomas: Look at the big screen, page seventeen of the contract.
The lawyer on stage put the contract up on the big screen. On page seventeen, there was a paper saying my family trust promised to pay one hundred and twenty million dollars if Christopher failed.
My full name was written at the bottom.
And next to it was a signature that looked just like mine.
I felt so cold inside.
Christopher did not just hide us, because he actually copied my handwriting to steal the money my dad left for Emily and me.
The heavy doors to the room slammed shut, the music stopped, and the big screen went dark.
Christopher took a step toward me, but it was already too late.
The doors opened again, and the one man Christopher feared the most walked into the room.
Thomas Harrington walked into the room with a legal notary, two money experts, three police agents, and a team of top lawyers. He walked slowly because everyone stopped talking the moment they saw him.
Christopher grabbed my arm tightly. “Abigail, please, I can explain everything.”
I pulled away with disgust. “Explain to Emily why you called her a brat after telling everyone you only have one son.”
“Do not talk about my business in front of the kid,” he whispered angrily.
“You brought her into this when you tried to steal her money,” I told him.
His face changed because he knew I saw the fake signature on page seventeen.
Thomas stood right next to me and looked at my husband. “Do not ever touch my sister again without her permission.”
Arthur Sinclair, Madeline’s rich father and Christopher’s partner, stood up. “This is a private business meeting, and you cannot be here.”
“This meeting includes a fake signature and stolen money,” Thomas said back. “It stopped being private when you tried to rob my family.”
The big screen turned on again, showing bank papers and secret emails. One of the money experts took the microphone. “For four years, the Adams Group paid money to six fake companies, and we found out these companies belong to the family of Brenda Collins, Mr. Adams’ assistant.”
Brenda stepped back into the crowd, looking scared. “I was just doing what my boss told me to do.”
“Do not say a word, Brenda,” Christopher yelled.
The expert kept reading the papers. “The money came from loans using Abigail’s trust, and it went into secret bank accounts for Christopher, his mother Beatrice, and a company owned by Arthur Sinclair.”
Arthur hit the table with his fist. “That is a lie!”
Then, a private email from Arthur showed up on the screen: We need the wife’s signature, and if she says no, just copy the one from her house papers.
Madeline looked at her dad with total horror. “Did you know Abigail was his real wife this whole time?”
Arthur stayed quiet and looked down.
Madeline turned to Christopher, her voice shaking. “You swore to me that you were divorced from your first wife.”
“I was going to fix it, Madeline,” Christopher said fast.
“By erasing your daughter from your life?” Madeline asked.
Madeline was not completely innocent because she knew about me and never asked to see real divorce papers. But she really did not know that Christopher was still married to me, or that his rich life was paid for with my money.
Emily hid behind my coat, holding my leg.
Christopher lowered his voice, trying to sound sad. “I did everything to make the company big, and I signed for you because it would help our family in the end.”
“Did it help us when you bought a luxury home in Chicago for Madeline while Emily and I barely had enough money for food?” I asked him.
Beatrice walked over to help her son. “Your daughter always had food to eat, Abigail.”
I looked at her directly. “You had plenty of things too, Beatrice, especially after your son bought you a big lake house with my stolen money.”
The house papers showed up on the screen, and Beatrice sat down quickly, looking faint. “Christopher told me the house was just a legal business investment.”
“And you took it anyway,” I said. “You also let your son spend every Christmas with another family while Emily waited up all night for him.”
Christopher clenched his fists, his eyes full of anger. “You are just doing this to get revenge on me.”
“Revenge hurts innocent people, Christopher,” I said softly. “I am just stopping a business built completely on lies.”
Thomas showed text messages between Christopher and Brenda, where Christopher told her to keep me away from the party. Then came a terrible text that broke my heart: Abigail will sign anything if she thinks Emily is fine, and later I will give her a cheap apartment and a tiny bit of money, and if she fights back, we will take Emily away because she has a low salary.
Emily looked up at my crying face. “Mommy, did Daddy want to take me away from you?”
Christopher dropped to his knees. “No, my sweet girl, that was just a standard business trick.”
Emily stepped back, away from his hands. “Do not call me your girl, because you never came to my school plays.”
The voice of his own daughter hurt Christopher more than any police report.
A police agent walked over and said Christopher was under arrest for fraud, stealing money, and forging signatures. Arthur Sinclair and Brenda were also ordered to come to the police station.
The rich business partners quickly walked away from Christopher. Madeline took off her diamond ring and threw it on the table.
“You told me this ring belonged to your sweet grandmother, Christopher,” she said quietly.
