Chapter 9 - THE MONEY TRAIL
By midnight, nobody was talking about a missing wedding ring anymore.
The story had become much larger.
Rebecca came upstairs with a laptop and three printed reports.
Dominic came with her.
I had not invited him.
But the moment I saw his face, I knew why Rebecca had allowed it.
He looked terrified.
“My company is missing eight hundred and forty thousand dollars.”
My father leaned back.
“Over what period?”
“Fourteen months.”
Rebecca opened the banking report.
“The transfers were divided into amounts below internal review thresholds.”
I looked at Dominic.
“You didn’t notice?”
His face tightened.
“My mother handled vendor reconciliation.”
My father’s eyes became cold.
“You made your mother responsible for verifying payments she could also authorize?”
Dominic nodded.
My father exhaled slowly.
“That is not trust.”
He pointed toward the report.
“That is negligence.”
Dominic accepted the criticism without argument.
Rebecca continued.
“Several transfers went through shell companies.”
She pointed at a name.
“Lake Briar Consulting.”
Dominic frowned.
“I’ve never heard of it.”
“Eleanor has.”
Rebecca turned the laptop toward him.
“The registered mailing address is a post office box leased under her maiden name.”
Dominic closed his eyes.
My father asked,
“Where did the money go?”
“Part of it appears connected to gambling debts.”
Dominic looked up sharply.
“My mother doesn’t gamble.”
Rebecca said nothing.
Then she clicked another file.
Photographs appeared.
Casino transaction records.
Private gaming club statements.
Wire transfers.
Eleanor had spent at least eighteen months losing money at high-limit tables in three states.
Harold was called upstairs.
He stared at the records for several minutes.
Then he sat down.
“I knew she played occasionally.”
Dominic looked at him.
“How occasionally?”
Harold did not answer.
“Dad.”
“Your mother told me she had it under control.”
Dominic laughed bitterly.
“Apparently that phrase runs in the family.”
Harold flinched.
For the first time, I understood that Dominic had not invented his habit of avoiding conflict.
He had inherited it.
Eleanor had built a family around silence.
Harold ignored problems.
Dominic minimized them.
Chloe weaponized them.
And Eleanor controlled everyone by making confrontation feel crueler than surrender.
My father looked toward Rebecca.
“How does the ring fit?”
“The original diamond was sold through an intermediary for approximately six hundred thousand dollars.”
Nathan arrived just in time to hear that sentence.
He stopped in the doorway.
“Six hundred?”
Rebecca nodded.
“Below market value because they wanted immediate liquidity.”
Nathan stared at the wall.
“The fake ring was then insured using the original appraisal.”
My father understood first.
“They intended to claim the original value.”
“Exactly.”
Rebecca looked toward Dominic.
“A theft during a crowded wedding would provide a believable loss event.”
My stomach turned.
“They were going to blame me.”
Everyone looked at me.
Rebecca nodded carefully.
“Yes.”
The plan became horrifyingly clear.
Chloe would report the ring missing.
Amanda would plant the replacement ring in my purse.
I would be publicly accused.
The fake ring could later disappear into police evidence, confusion, or another staged loss.
Meanwhile, the insurance claim would seek more than one million dollars based on the original diamond’s value.
My father’s voice went quiet.
“And Vivienne becomes the criminal they point toward.”
Dominic stood so quickly his chair moved backward.
“I had no idea.”
Nathan looked at him.
“You knew your sister wanted to humiliate her.”
Dominic stared at the floor.
“Yes.”
“And you let it happen.”
“Yes.”
Nathan shook his head.
“At least I only married into this family today.”
Chloe appeared in the hallway behind him.
Her mascara had streaked down both cheeks.
“Nathan.”
He did not turn.
She whispered,
“I didn’t know about the fake ring.”
He finally faced her.
“But you knew about framing Vivienne.”
Chloe had no answer.
Nathan walked past her.
She began crying again.
I almost felt sorry for her.
Almost.
Then she looked at me.
“This is because of you.”
My sympathy disappeared.
“What?”
“If you had just let us search you without making a scene—”
Dominic exploded.
“Stop!”
Everyone turned.
I had never heard him shout at his sister.
Chloe froze.
Dominic pointed toward me.
“She did nothing.”
Chloe stared at him.
“You’re taking her side now?”
His face twisted.
“There should never have been sides.”
Those words were correct.
May you like
They were also three years late.
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