Chapter 3: The House He Tried to Steal
For a moment, I forgot about the wedding.
I forgot about the guests, the flowers, and the expensive dress dragging across the hotel carpet.
All I could hear was Daniel Price's voice.
“Someone has been attempting to transfer that property without her knowledge.””
I turned toward Derek.
He had gone completely still.
“What does that mean?”” I asked Daniel.
The attorney opened his briefcase and removed a thick folder.
“Your mother established a trust shortly before her death. The house was transferred into it, with you as the sole beneficiary once you turned twenty-five. Your father was permitted to live there and maintain the property, but he couldn't sell or mortgage it without your consent.””
I stared at the papers.
“My mother never told me about a trust.””
“She may have intended to explain it when you were older. Her estate planning was complicated, but the arrangement was legally documented.””
Dad rubbed his face with both hands.
“Eleanor told me the house would always belong to Camille,” he murmured.
“I didn't know there were restrictions.””
Daniel nodded sympathetically.
“You were allowed to reside there. You were not authorized to pledge it as collateral for your personal debts.””
Dad looked horrified.
“But I never did that.””
Derek abruptly stepped forward.
“This is a private family matter. Mr. Price, I suggest you leave.””
Daniel didn't even glance at him.
“Mr. Whitmore, I haven't finished speaking.””
“You're trespassing on a private event.””
“I'm standing in a hotel hallway.””
Vanessa pulled at Derek's sleeve.
“Derek, maybe we should go downstairs.””
He shook her off.
“No. This man is spreading lies about me.””
Daniel removed a second document from the folder.
“Yesterday, my office received a notification that a lender had filed a preliminary inquiry concerning the Brooks property. The inquiry included a purported authorization from Mr. Brooks.””
He placed the document in my hands.
The signature at the bottom looked like my father's.
But Dad was shaking his head before I'd even finished reading.
“I didn't sign that.””
Derek laughed too quickly.
“People forget what they've signed all the time.””
My father looked at him.
“I have never signed anything authorizing you to take Camille's house.””
“You signed the loan agreement.””
“Yes. A loan secured against my workshop.””
Derek's expression sharpened.
“Be careful, Robert.””
That was the moment I understood.
Derek wasn't merely angry because I had canceled the wedding.
He was afraid of something.
And he was afraid my father might say it aloud.
I turned the paper over. There was a reference number, a date, and a stamp from a property services firm I'd never heard of.
“Daniel, can you prove this document is fraudulent?””
“I can begin investigating it immediately. I won't make a final determination without reviewing the originals, but the authorization raises serious concerns.””
Derek reached for the paper.
I pulled it away.
“Don't touch me,” I said.
His face flushed.
“You have no idea what you're doing. You're destroying your own future because you're too emotional to understand a business transaction.””
I laughed bitterly.
“My future? You tried to make me marry you while threatening to take my father's home.””
“I was trying to protect my investment.””
“What investment?””
He stared at me.
For one revealing second, his mouth opened, but no words came out.
Then Vanessa spoke.
“Derek, stop. You're making this worse.””
He spun toward her.
“Shut up.””
She recoiled.
I'd seen Vanessa manipulate people for years. At dinner parties, she'd make cutting remarks about my clothes and then claim she was joking. She would interrupt my stories to redirect the conversation toward herself. When Derek and I announced our engagement, she'd hugged him first and told me I was lucky he had finally settled down.
I'd tolerated it because I trusted Derek.
Now I wondered how much of their behavior I'd mistaken for harmless teasing.
Daniel closed his briefcase.
“Camille, I recommend that you do not sign any documents today. Your father should also refrain from making further payments until the loan and collateral arrangements have been independently reviewed.””
Derek scoffed.
“Convenient advice from a lawyer who wants to bill for an investigation.””
Daniel met his gaze.
“My client is entitled to understand the documents affecting her property.””
“She's not your client.””
“She is now.””
Derek's face turned red.
I looked at Daniel.
“What happens to the house if that authorization is fraudulent?””
“If someone submitted false documents, the transaction can be challenged. Depending on the evidence, there may also be grounds for a criminal investigation. But we need to establish exactly what happened.””
Dad leaned against the wall.
“I should have told you about the loan,” he whispered to me.
“I'm sorry, sweetheart.””
I took his hands.
“You were trying to keep your promise to Mom. That's all you've ever done.””
“I thought Derek was helping us.””
“So did I.””
My voice broke.
For three years, I'd believed Derek's generosity was proof of his character. He'd paid for dinners, arranged surprise trips, and offered to help Dad when the workshop struggled.
I'd mistaken money for kindness.
I had never asked why Derek seemed so interested in our finances.
Now I knew I should have.
A sharp buzzing sound interrupted my thoughts.
Vanessa's phone.
She looked at the screen, then quickly turned it facedown.
Derek noticed.
“Who is it?””
“No one.””
“Let me see.””
She clutched the phone to her chest.
“Derek, not now.””
He grabbed her wrist.
“Give it to me.””
“Stop hurting me!””
The words echoed through the hallway.
Everyone froze.
Derek released her.
For the first time since I'd met her, Vanessa looked genuinely frightened of him.
I stepped back, pulling Dad with me.
“Daniel, can you call hotel security?””
“Already done,” he replied.
Derek straightened his jacket as if he could restore his dignity by smoothing the fabric.
“This is absurd. Camille, if you leave this hotel without resolving our engagement, don't expect me to protect your family from the consequences.””
I stared at him.
“You're still threatening us?””
“I'm warning you.””
“No. You're showing me who you are.””
He lowered his voice.
“You think your father is innocent? Ask him what happened the night your mother died.””
My entire body went cold.
Dad stopped breathing for a second.
I looked at him.
“Dad?””
He didn't meet my eyes.
Derek smiled, and this time there was no attempt to disguise his cruelty.
“Go ahead, Camille. Ask him why he never told you everything about that accident.””
My father gripped the edge of a nearby table.
“Derek,” he whispered.
“Don't.””
“What happened the night Mom died?”” I asked.
Nobody answered.
I turned to Daniel, but even he looked uncertain.
Then Dad slowly reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a small, yellowed envelope.
“I never wanted you to see this,” he said.
His hands shook so violently that the envelope nearly slipped from his fingers.
“Your mother left me a letter the week before the accident. I found it among her things after the funeral.””
I stared at the envelope.
“Why didn't you give it to me?””
“Because she wrote something in it that I couldn't explain. Something I thought would destroy the life I was trying to build for you.””
He held it out.
My name was written across the front in my mother's familiar handwriting.
I took it with trembling fingers.
Behind us, Derek suddenly lunged forward.
“Give me that letter!””
Daniel stepped between us.
“Mr. Whitmore, stand back.””
Derek's expression twisted with panic.
And as I tore open the envelope, I saw the first line written in my mother's handwriting.
Camille, if you're reading this, it means someone has finally discovered what Derek's family did to us.
I looked up.
May you like
Derek had gone white.
And my father whispered, “There's something else. Your mother knew who was responsible for the accident—but she never had the chance to tell the police.””
