Chapter 10 - THE WEDDING THAT WOULD NOT HAPPEN
At 2:00 p.m., Dominic called the wedding planner.
Brooke heard the conversation from across the room.
“Cancel Saturday.”
Her head snapped up.
“Dominic.”
He continued.
“All events.”
“The ceremony.”
“The reception.”
“The rehearsal dinner.”
“Everything.”
Brooke moved toward him.
“You cannot do this.”
Dominic turned away from the phone.
“I just did.”
“You’re throwing away three years because of accusations?”
“No.”
“I’m ending an engagement because I discovered the woman I intended to marry forged my sister’s signature, stole my nephew’s money, sold my dead mother’s possessions, lied about my family trust, and secretly worked with people connected to my brother-in-law’s death.”
Brooke stared at him.
“You don’t know that last part.”
“You’re right.”
He looked at Victor.
“That part is still being investigated.”
Brooke’s eyes became wet.
This time the tears appeared genuine.
“Dominic, I loved you.”
He studied her.
“Maybe.”
“I did.”
“Then why Natalie?”
Brooke’s face hardened.
“What?”
“Why did you hate her?”
“I didn’t.”
“You wanted her gone.”
“She was always here.”
Dominic frowned.
Brooke’s voice cracked.
“Every decision involved Natalie.”
“Every holiday.”
“Every conversation about the estate.”
“Every time your mother’s name came up, Natalie became untouchable.”
Dominic stared at her.
“She is my sister.”
“And I was supposed to become your wife.”
“That did not require removing her.”
“It did if I was ever going to have a place here.”
Dominic shook his head.
“You already had one.”
“No.”
Brooke pointed toward Catherine’s portrait.
“This house still belonged to a dead woman.”
“Every room.”
“Every tradition.”
“Every account.”
“Every piece of jewelry.”
“You never gave me anything without reminding me where it came from.”
Dominic’s expression remained calm.
“And that made theft reasonable?”
Brooke looked away.
Dominic understood something then.
Brooke did not believe she had stolen.
She believed she had taken what would eventually become hers.
That was more dangerous.
Samuel entered.
“We have an update.”
Dominic turned.
“Gerald Pike was stopped at T.F. Green Airport.”
Brooke went still.
“He was carrying forty thousand dollars in cash.”
Dominic watched her reaction.
Samuel continued.
“And a passport issued three weeks ago.”
“Destination?”
“Lisbon.”
Brooke closed her eyes.
Dominic looked at Samuel.
“Has he spoken?”
“Not yet.”
“But his laptop was seized.”
Brooke opened her eyes.
Panic was there now.
Dominic saw it clearly.
Samuel continued.
“There’s one more thing.”
“What?”
“Gerald tried to delete a folder before surrendering the computer.”
“What was it called?”
Samuel looked toward Natalie.
“Project Widow.”
Natalie’s face went blank.
Dominic turned toward Brooke.
She whispered.
“I don’t know what that is.”
Dominic replied quietly.
May you like
“I think you do.”
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