Chapter 9 - Chloe’s deal
Chloe was not innocent.
I refused to pretend otherwise.
She had helped Julian hide money.
She had accepted expensive gifts.
She had known about our marriage.
And yes, she had been sleeping with my husband.
But fear changes alliances quickly.
Chloe told the court that Julian maintained a private storage unit under a corporate subsidiary.
She claimed the second safe contained original ledgers.
Contracts.
Storage drives.
And documents bearing signatures from people who had never authorized them.
Julian denied everything.
Evelyn blamed Chloe.
“This woman seduced my son!”
Chloe actually laughed.
“Your son recruited me.”
Then she looked directly at Evelyn.
“And you knew.”
Evelyn went silent.
Chloe revealed something else.
The divorce had been planned months earlier.
Julian did not merely want custody because he loved Maya.
He believed full custody would give him control over a trust created by my late father for Maya.
That trust became accessible only for specific expenses while she was a minor.
Julian had discovered a possible route to petition for expanded control if he became the primary custodial parent.
My stomach turned.
Maya had been leverage in every possible sense.
Judge Thorne immediately issued temporary protective orders governing custody and contact pending further review.
Julian was not granted the victory he had expected.
Far from it.
But then Chloe handed the bailiff something.
A key.
Julian stared at it.
“Where did you get that?”
“You gave it to me.”
“That isn’t mine.”
“You told me never to lose it.”
Judge Thorne looked at Chloe.
“What does it open?”
“The storage unit.”
Julian laughed too quickly.
“She’s lying.”
Chloe shook her head.
“No, Julian.”
May you like
Then she delivered the sentence that frightened him more than anything else that morning.
“I made copies before coming here.”
