Chapter 2 - THE WIFE THEY NEEDED TO DISCREDITTwenty minutes later, Anna was sitting in a private hotel office.
A paramedic examined her.
Her blood pressure was elevated.
Her palm was scraped.
Her hip hurt.
But the baby's heartbeat was reassuring.
Anna closed her eyes when she heard it.
Fast.
Steady.
Alive.
Only then did she realize how frightened she'd been.
Daniel Cross waited outside until the paramedic finished.
Ethan was being kept separately while hotel management contacted police.
Vanessa and Rachel had also been asked not to leave.
Anna's first question wasn't about the diamond.
“Where is my husband?”
“Separate conference room.”
“Did you find the ring?”
Daniel hesitated.
“We found the box.”
“Where?”
“With Ms. Cole.”
Rachel.
“Was the ring inside?”
“No.”
Anna looked up.
“So where is it?”
“We don't know yet.”
“And the USB?”
Daniel's expression changed.
“Mr. Reed dropped it during the struggle.”
“Did you open it?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because we don't know who owns the data.”
Anna almost laughed.
“My husband seemed pretty concerned about it.”
“He did.”
Daniel placed a clear evidence bag on the desk.
The USB sat inside.
Anna stared at it.
She recognized the drive.
Not from Ethan's office.
From hers.
A year earlier, Anna's late father had given her several encrypted drives containing documents related to Reed Development Holdings.
The family company.
Her inheritance.
Anna had stepped away from daily management during pregnancy.
Ethan had increasingly handled administrative matters for her.
She trusted him.
Until tonight.
“That belongs to me.”
Daniel looked at her.
“You're certain?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“My initials are scratched underneath.”
Daniel turned the evidence bag.
A.R.
Anna felt cold.
“Why does Ethan have it?”
Daniel couldn't answer.
Police arrived.
The wedding dissolved into chaos.
Guests were allowed to leave after providing contact information.
The bride's perfect reception ended with officers photographing the bridal suite.
Evelyn tried to approach Anna.
Anna raised a hand.
“Don't.”
Evelyn stopped.
For the first time that night, the older woman looked uncertain.
“I was trying to recover my family's property.”
“You had people tear my dress.”
“I believed—”
“You didn't know.”
Evelyn went silent.
Anna continued.
“You pushed a pregnant woman onto the floor because somebody pointed at her.”
“I didn't push you.”
“You ordered the search.”
Evelyn's jaw tightened.
“I made a mistake.”
Anna looked at her.
“No. A mistake is calling someone by the wrong name.”
Then she walked away.
At the hospital, Ethan called fourteen times.
Anna ignored every call.
Her obstetrician wanted several hours of monitoring.
The baby remained stable.
Around midnight, Anna's attorney arrived.
Maya Collins had handled Reed family business for nine years.
She listened without interrupting.
Then Anna showed her a photograph of the USB.
Maya's face changed.
“Where did he get that?”
“I was hoping you could tell me.”
“That drive contains board records.”
“What records?”
“Your father's private archive.”
Anna stared.
“I thought those were copies.”
“Some are.”
“Some?”
Maya sat closer.
“Anna, has Ethan asked you to sign anything recently?”
The question seemed unrelated.
Then suddenly it didn't.
“A few things.”
“What?”
“Insurance. Investment approvals. A property transfer.”
Maya became still.
“What property transfer?”
“The Brookfield site.”
“You signed that?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Three weeks ago.”
Maya's face lost color.
“I never approved a Brookfield transfer.”
Anna stared.
“You don't need to approve everything.”
“I do when Reed Development is selling a protected asset.”
“Ethan said it was an internal restructuring.”
Maya pulled out her phone.
“Do you have the document?”
“Probably in my email.”
They found it.
Maya read.
Then reread.
“This isn't an internal transfer.”
“What is it?”
“A controlling option.”
Anna's heart started pounding.
“To whom?”
Maya enlarged the company name.
Mercer Capital Partners.
Anna stared.
Mercer.
Vanessa's family.
The wedding.
The missing diamond.
Ethan in the bridal suite.
The USB.
Everything suddenly connected without making sense.
“How much is Brookfield worth?”
“Depending on zoning approval?”
Maya paused.
“Between eighteen and twenty-four million.”
Anna felt nauseous.
“And what did I sign?”
“Something that may give Mercer Capital the right to acquire it for less than six.”
Anna looked toward the monitor beside her bed.
The baby's heartbeat continued steadily.
“Maya.”
“Yes?”
“Did my husband trick me into signing away twelve million dollars?”
Maya didn't soften the answer.
“Possibly more.”
Anna closed her eyes.
Now she understood why Ethan had been frightened when the surveillance started.
But another question remained.
Why frame her for stealing a ring?
Maya thought for several seconds.
Then asked:
“What happens to your authority in Reed Development if you're charged with a felony involving theft?”
Anna opened her eyes.
She knew.
Her father had written the corporate morality clause himself.
Any director formally charged with dishonesty involving valuable property could be temporarily suspended pending review.
During suspension, Anna's voting proxy would transfer.
To her spouse.
Ethan.
Anna whispered:
“They didn't want the ring back.”
Maya stared at her.
“No.”
“They wanted me accused of taking it.”
May you like
And suddenly the cruelty in the ballroom looked less like mob behavior.
It looked like a business plan.
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