Chapter 2 - THE WOMAN HE THOUGHT HE KNEWThe drive home was silent.
Sophie sat in the back seat wrapped in Adrian’s coat, staring out the window while rain slid across the glass.
Adrian kept checking her in the mirror.
Every time he looked, guilt tightened around his throat.
Three years earlier, Emily had died after an aggressive illness that had taken her faster than anyone expected.
Sophie had been five.
For almost a year afterward, Adrian had slept on the floor beside his daughter’s bed because she woke screaming for her mother.
Then Vanessa came along.
Calm.
Patient.
Helpful.
Or so he had believed.
Vanessa had met Adrian at a charity dinner eighteen months ago.
She never tried too hard.
That was what he liked about her.
At first.
She brought Sophie books instead of expensive gifts.
She asked before touching Emily’s things.
She told Adrian, “I would never try to replace her mother.”
He remembered those exact words now.
And they made him sick.
When they reached the house, Sophie stopped at the front door.
“Is she coming back?”
Adrian crouched in front of her.
“No.”
Sophie searched his face.
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
“Even if she cries?”
“Yes.”
“Even if she says sorry?”
“Yes.”
Sophie was quiet.
Then she whispered, “She always says sorry when you’re there.”
Adrian felt his stomach drop.
“What does that mean?”
Sophie looked toward the stairs.
“Nothing.”
“Sophie.”
She rubbed one hand over the other.
“When you go to work… sometimes she gets different.”
Adrian’s chest tightened.
“How different?”
Sophie didn’t answer.
Instead, she asked, “Can I change my dress?”
“Of course.”
She ran upstairs.
Adrian stood alone in the foyer for several seconds.
Then he pulled out his phone.
He called Vanessa.
She answered on the second ring.
“Thank God. Adrian, please listen—”
“You have one hour to remove your things from my house.”
Silence.
Then her voice changed.
“You can’t be serious.”
“I am.”
“You’re ending our engagement because a grieving child threw a tantrum?”
Adrian’s grip tightened around the phone.
“I watched you put your hands on her.”
“She was disrespecting me.”
“She’s eight.”
“She needs discipline.”
“She needs protection.”
Vanessa laughed bitterly.
“From me?”
“Yes.”
That word landed hard.
“You’re making a mistake.”
“No. I made the mistake six months ago when I asked you to marry me.”
Vanessa’s breathing became slower.
“You really want to do this?”
“I do.”
“Fine.”
Too calm.
Adrian noticed immediately.
“Vanessa?”
“You should probably check your email.”
The call ended.
Adrian stared at the screen.
A notification appeared.
One new message.
From his attorney.
URGENT — CALL ME IMMEDIATELY REGARDING MERCER FOUNDATION TRANSFER AUTHORIZATION
Adrian frowned.
Transfer authorization?
He opened the attachment.
Then his blood ran cold.
May you like
At the bottom of the page was his signature.
Except Adrian had never signed it.
