Chapter 10 - ANDREW’S BIGGEST PLAN
The flash drive changed everything.
Andrew had spent almost a year preparing a legal attack against my family.
He created internal documents claiming Escalante financing had been predatory.
Emails had been selectively edited.
Reports had been manipulated.
A consultant had been paid to produce an analysis accusing Escalante Strategic Holdings of deliberately trapping Whitmore Capital in debt.
It was fiction.
Expensive fiction.
But Andrew intended to use it.
His plan was simple.
Divorce me.
Paint me as unstable and dishonest.
Claim my family had exploited our marriage to gain control over Whitmore Capital.
Then sue.
If the strategy succeeded, Andrew believed he could invalidate portions of the financing agreements and walk away with the company.
The necklace accusation had been part of creating a character narrative.
Mariana was dishonest.
Mariana stole.
Mariana manipulated.
Mariana used her father’s money to infiltrate the Whitmore family.
The more I read, the colder I became.
My father sat across from me.
“He planned this for a long time.”
“Yes.”
“Longer than Brenda?”
I turned another page.
Then I found the first draft.
Dated fourteen months earlier.
Brenda had only been involved with Andrew for eleven months.
That meant the betrayal started before the mistress.
Andrew had already decided to turn me into his enemy while I was still sleeping beside him.
That night, I allowed myself to cry.
Not because I wanted him back.
Because I finally understood how long I had been living inside a lie.
The next morning, the Escalante legal team filed a counterclaim.
By noon, financial reporters had learned Whitmore Capital was undergoing emergency restructuring.
By 2:00 p.m., the company’s stock in several publicly traded affiliates had fallen sharply.
By 4:00 p.m., Andrew appeared on television.
I watched from my office.
He stood outside Whitmore headquarters surrounded by reporters.
“This is a private family dispute.”
He smiled confidently.
“Whitmore Capital remains strong.”
A reporter shouted, “Is it true your wife’s family controls your debt?”
Andrew’s smile tightened.
“Our marriage involved complicated financial relationships.”
Another reporter called out.
“Did you assault your wife?”
Andrew froze.
Then he answered.
“Absolutely not.”
I stared at the television.
He had done it in front of twenty witnesses.
Still, he lied.
My attorney looked at me.
“That helps us.”
I nodded.
Then a reporter asked the question that destroyed Andrew’s composure.
“Mr. Whitmore, did you and your mistress stage the theft of a family necklace to frame your wife?”
Andrew’s face changed.
“Where did you hear that?”
The reporters surged forward.
And from somewhere behind them, a familiar female voice shouted.
“Ask him about the recording.”
Brenda stepped into view.
May you like
Andrew turned.
For the first time, mistress and husband looked at each other as enemies.
