Part 4: The Wedding Money They Never Had
Part 4: The Wedding Money They Never Had
The morning after I called Adrian, I woke up before my alarm.
For a few seconds, I forgot everything.
The hospital room was quiet.
The sunlight came through the blinds.
My body still ached from surgery, but there was a strange feeling I hadn't experienced in a long time.
Control.
Then my phone lit up.
Twenty-seven new messages.
All from my family.
I stared at the screen.
Before, I would have opened every message immediately.
I would have worried.
I would have apologized.
I would have tried to fix whatever crisis they created.
But this time, I didn't rush.
Because for the first time, I understood something.
Their emergency did not automatically become my responsibility.
I opened the messages one by one.
The first was from my mother.
"Maren, we need to talk. You are misunderstanding the situation."
The second came ten minutes later.
"Your father and I have always done what is best for you."
The third:
"Please don't make your sister suffer because of a misunderstanding."
A misunderstanding.
That word almost made me smile.
My parents had a special talent for turning their actions into accidents.
They never stole.
They borrowed.
They never lied.
They protected.
They never hurt me.
They did what was necessary.
I placed the phone down.
Then I opened the message from Liora.
Unlike my mother, she didn't pretend.
"Why are you doing this?"
I stared at those words.
Not:
"Are you okay?"
Not:
"How is your surgery recovery?"
Not:
"Can we fix this?"
Just:
"Why are you doing this?"
As if defending myself was the problem.
I didn't reply.
A few minutes later, my attorney called.
I had never needed a lawyer before.
My family always told me legal problems were messy.
Expensive.
Something only wealthy people dealt with.
But Adrian had connected me with someone he trusted.
Her name was Evelyn Hart.
And after speaking with her for five minutes, I understood why.
She didn't waste time.
"Maren, I've reviewed the documents."
"Okay."
"There are several issues."
My fingers tightened around the blanket.
"What kind of issues?"
"First, the sale could not legally proceed without your authorization."
"I didn't authorize it."
"I know."
Her voice remained calm.
"The signature appears forged."
I closed my eyes.
Hearing someone else say it made it feel more real.
"What happens now?"
"Now we investigate."
"And the condo?"
"If the sale was fraudulent, we can challenge the transfer."
A wave of relief moved through me.
Then she continued.
"But I need to warn you."
"What?"
"The buyer moved quickly."
"How quickly?"
"Almost immediately after purchase, they began making changes."
My stomach tightened.
"What changes?"
"Renovation requests. Ownership updates. Insurance changes."
I felt a cold chill.
They weren't just buying my condo.
They were trying to make it look like it had always belonged to them.
Like they wanted to erase me completely.
"Who is the buyer?"
There was a pause.
Then Evelyn answered.
"The company is called Vale Horizon Holdings."
I froze.
Vale.
My last name.
"That's impossible."
"Why?"
"Because my family doesn't own a company."
A pause.
Then:
"Actually, Maren, they do."
I stopped breathing.
"What?"
"We found a registered company created six months ago."
Six months.
Around the same time Liora announced her engagement.
Around the same time my mother started talking about wedding expenses.
Around the same time they suddenly became interested in my financial situation.
"Who owns it?"
Evelyn hesitated.
"The records are complicated."
"Tell me."
"Your father is listed as the director."
My heart sank.
"My father?"
"Yes."
I felt confused.
My father?
The same man who left the voicemail?
The same man who calmly told me they sold my home?
Something didn't make sense.
"My father doesn't know anything about business."
"Maybe not."
She paused.
"Or maybe he knows more than you think."
That possibility hurt.
I had spent years believing my father was simply passive.
The quiet parent who followed my mother's decisions.
But maybe I had misunderstood him too.
Before I could process it, another call came through.
My father.
I looked at the screen.
This time, I answered.
"Maren."
His voice sounded tired.
Not angry.
Tired.
"Why didn't you tell me you were selling my condo?"
Silence.
Long silence.
Then:
"Because your mother said you would refuse."
My heart sank.
"So you knew?"
"I knew we needed the money."
"That wasn't my question."
Another pause.
"Yes."
The honesty shocked me.
"You knew."
"Yes."
I felt tears forming, but I refused to let them fall.
"How could you?"
My father's voice became quieter.
"Because I thought I was helping your sister."
"And what about me?"
He didn't answer.
That silence was the answer.
For years, I had wondered who my parents chose when they had to choose.
Now I knew.
Not me.
"Maren, please listen."
I almost ended the call.
But something made me wait.
"Your mother believes this wedding will change everything."
"What does that mean?"
"She thinks Liora marrying into that family will give us access to something bigger."
My eyebrows tightened.
"What family?"
My father hesitated.
And in that hesitation, I knew.
There was something else.
Something nobody had told me.
"Liora's fiancé."
"Who is he?"
My father's voice dropped.
"His name is Daniel Cross."
My entire body went still.
Cross.
The same last name as Adrian.
The same family connection that had appeared in my investigation.
I looked toward the window.
Suddenly, everything connected.
The condo.
The wedding.
The hidden company.
The forged documents.
This wasn't about paying for a wedding.
The wedding was a business deal.
And I was the person they planned to sacrifice to make it happen.
Before I could ask another question, my father whispered:
"Maren, there is something you need to know about Daniel."
"What?"
"He isn't marrying Liora because he loves her."
My heart started pounding.
"Then why?"
My father's voice cracked.
"Because your family has been trying to get close to him for years."
I gripped the phone.
"And now they're using my condo to pay for it."
Silence.
Then my father said the words that changed everything.
"Your sister's wedding isn't a celebration."
"It's a transaction."
I looked at the hospital door.
For the first time, I wasn't just angry.
I was determined.
Because they didn't just steal my home.
They tried to use me as a payment for a deal I never agreed to.
And tomorrow, they were expecting me to smile at the wedding.
May you like
They were about to learn something important.
The person they betrayed would be the person who exposed everything.
