Chapter 4 - ROXANNE'S SECRET
I didn't confront Roxanne immediately.
Elena told me not to.
“Let me finish tracing the transfers.”
So I waited.
Waiting was difficult.
Especially when the person involved was my sister.
Roxanne and I had never been close.
But she was still my sister.
I wanted to believe there was an explanation.
Maybe she had signed something without understanding it.
Maybe her name had been used.
Maybe Dad had created the company for her.
There were dozens of possibilities.
But none of them made me feel better.
Three days later, Elena called.
“Come to my office.”
I went.
She placed a folder in front of me.
“The Nevada company belongs to Roxanne.”
I opened it.
The company had received nearly $1.8 million.
“What is this?”
“We don't know.”
“Where did the money go?”
“Personal expenses.”
I stared.
“Roxanne used company money?”
“That's what the records indicate.”
“Cars?”
“Yes.”
“Jewelry?”
“Yes.”
“Private school?”
“Yes.”
“Vacations?”
“Yes.”
I closed my eyes.
“Does Dad know?”
Elena looked at me.
“That's the interesting part.”
“What?”
“Your father's signature appears on several transfer authorizations.”
I stared.
“So he knew.”
“Yes.”
“And he allowed her to take the money?”
“Looks like it.”
I felt sick.
All those years.
All those times Dad had told me the company couldn't afford to increase my salary.
All those times he had complained about expenses.
Meanwhile, Roxanne had been receiving millions.
I didn't know what hurt more.
The money.
Or the confirmation that I had never been imagining the favoritism.
That evening, I went to see Roxanne.
She opened the door wearing a silk robe.
She looked surprised.
“Adriana?”
“We need to talk.”
She sighed.
“If this is about the company—”
“It is.”
Her expression changed.
I walked inside.
She closed the door.
“Dad told you?”
“No.”
“Then who?”
“I hired an accountant.”
She went pale.
“You did what?”
“Where did the money go, Roxanne?”
She said nothing.
“$1.8 million.”
She looked away.
“I didn't steal anything.”
“Then explain it.”
“I was helping Dad.”
“How?”
“He told me to move money.”
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
“That's not good enough.”
She began crying.
“I didn't know what he was doing.”
I stared at her.
“You signed the documents.”
“He told me they were temporary.”
“Temporary?”
“He said the company was restructuring.”
I sat down.
“Roxanne, people could go to prison for this.”
Her face collapsed.
“I know.”
“Does Mom know?”
“Yes.”
I closed my eyes.
“Does Gabriel?”
“No.”
“Did Sienna's grandparents know?”
She looked at me.
“Don't bring Sienna into this.”
“You brought her into it when you laughed at her.”
Roxanne looked ashamed.
“I was trying to make Dad laugh.”
“He was already laughing.”
She started crying harder.
“I know.”
I stood.
“I need the truth.”
She wiped her face.
“Dad borrowed money from the company years ago.”
“For what?”
“Investments.”
“How much?”
“Millions.”
“And he lost it?”
She nodded.
“Some.”
“How much?”
“Enough that the company was in trouble.”
“So he started moving money around.”
“Yes.”
“And you helped.”
“Yes.”
I looked at her.
“Why?”
“Because I was afraid.”
“Of him?”
She nodded.
“Dad always said if I didn't help, he'd cut me off.”
I stared at her.
For the first time, I realized something uncomfortable.
Roxanne had been favored.
But being favored did not mean being free.
She had lived inside the same family system.
She had simply been trapped in a different position.
I didn't forgive her.
Not yet.
But I understood.
Before I left, she grabbed my arm.
“Adriana.”
“What?”
“There's something else.”
“What?”
“Dad has a private account.”
“Where?”
“I don't know.”
“Roxanne.”
“I swear.”
She lowered her voice.
“But I know who manages it.”
“Who?”
“Our mother.”
I froze.
“Mom?”
Roxanne nodded.
“She signs everything.”
I went home.
Sienna was sitting at the kitchen table doing homework.
She looked up.
“Mom?”
“Yes?”
“Are you okay?”
I smiled.
“I'm fine.”
She studied me.
“You're doing the face.”
“What face?”
“The face where you're pretending.”
I laughed.
“You're getting too smart.”
She shrugged.
“I know.”
That night, after she went to bed, I called Elena.
“Trace my mother's accounts.”
She was silent.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
The next afternoon, Elena called.
“Adriana.”
“Yes?”
“Your mother has a private trust.”
“How much?”
“Approximately $6.2 million.”
I closed my eyes.
“Where did it come from?”
“Payments from Apex.”
My stomach dropped.
“Over how long?”
“Eight years.”
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
Then Elena said:
“There's a final beneficiary.”
“Who?”
She paused.
“Your father.”
I sat completely still.
Everything suddenly looked different.
My mother hadn't been silently tolerating my father's behavior.
She had been financially involved.
But there was still something Elena hadn't told me.
“What aren't you saying?”
She exhaled.
“The trust has a clause.”
“What clause?”
“If your father dies or becomes incapacitated, control passes to the oldest child.”
I frowned.
“The oldest child is Roxanne.”
“No.”
I froze.
“I'm the oldest.”
Elena was quiet.
Then she said:
“Yes.”
I stared at the wall.
“What does that mean?”
“It means your parents have spent years keeping you dependent.”
I couldn't breathe.
“Why?”
“Because if you ever left Apex…”
She paused.
“…you could gain control of a substantial portion of the family assets.”
I looked toward Sienna's bedroom.
Suddenly, the broken horse didn't feel like the beginning of the story.
May you like
It felt like the final insult in a much larger game.
And I had just discovered that my parents had spent years making sure I never realized I had a seat at the table.
