Chapter 3 - THE FAMILY BUSINESS
Ryan slept on the couch that night.
I didn't ask him to.
He simply took a blanket and went there after I told him I wanted answers in the morning.
I stayed awake until nearly three.
My mind replayed everything.
Every time Ryan had told me his mother needed help.
Every time Evelyn had called me after some emergency.
Every time Madison had complained about money.
Every time Nathan had suddenly needed a loan.
I had thought I was helping four separate people.
Now I suspected I had been funding one system.
At 6:14 the next morning, my phone rang.
Michael.
“Claire, I found something.”
I sat up.
“What?”
“Harbor Crest isn't really a consulting company.”
“I figured.”
“No.”
His voice was serious.
“You haven't heard the worst part.”
I got dressed.
“Tell me.”
“I'll send you an address.”
“What address?”
“An office.”
“Whose?”
“Harbor Crest.”
I drove there before work.
The address led to a small office building in downtown Bellevue.
The company name was printed on the glass.
HARBOR CREST CONSULTING.
I entered.
A receptionist looked up.
“Can I help you?”
“I'm Claire Bennett.”
She froze.
That reaction told me everything.
“Is Ryan Bennett here?”
“No.”
“Who is?”
She hesitated.
Then a woman walked out of a glass office.
She was probably in her early forties.
Dark hair.
Expensive coat.
Perfect makeup.
She looked at me with immediate recognition.
“You're Claire.”
I stopped.
“How do you know me?”
She smiled.
“Because I've been hearing your name for years.”
“Who are you?”
“Victoria Hale.”
I stared.
“What's your connection to Harbor Crest?”
“I manage operations.”
“Who owns it?”
She didn't answer.
I stepped closer.
“My husband is listed as manager.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because that's how the structure was established.”
“By whom?”
She smiled again.
“Your husband.”
I felt anger rising.
“What does this company do?”
Victoria sighed.
“Money management.”
“Whose money?”
“Private clients.”
“Does Evelyn Prescott have an account?”
She hesitated.
“Yes.”
“Nathan?”
“Yes.”
“Madison?”
“Yes.”
I swallowed.
“Ryan?”
“Obviously.”
“And me?”
She looked uncomfortable.
“No.”
I almost laughed.
“Of course not.”
Victoria crossed her arms.
“You should speak with Ryan.”
“I have.”
“Then you know this isn't simple.”
“Actually, I know nothing.”
She looked at me for several seconds.
Then she said something I wasn't expecting.
“You should know that your husband has been trying to keep you out of this.”
I stared at her.
“Keep me out of what?”
“Harbor Crest.”
“Why?”
“Because he believes you're too honest.”
The words hit me harder than they should have.
I looked around the office.
“How much money passes through here?”
Victoria didn't answer.
“Hundreds of thousands?”
Silence.
“Millions?”
Her silence told me enough.
“Does my money pass through here?”
“No.”
“Then whose money?”
“Family money.”
I laughed bitterly.
“That's what you call it?”
She looked down.
“Yes.”
I left.
When I got home, Ryan was waiting.
“You went to Harbor Crest.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because you wouldn't tell me the truth.”
He looked exhausted.
“I was trying to protect you.”
“From what?”
He sat down.
“Mom has debt.”
“I know.”
“Not just the mortgage.”
“How much?”
He hesitated.
“About $380,000.”
I stared.
“What?”
“She refinanced the house twice.”
“Why?”
“Business losses.”
“What business?”
He didn't answer.
I felt a chill.
“Harbor Crest?”
“No.”
“Then what?”
He looked away.
“Madison's boutique.”
I blinked.
“What boutique?”
“She had an online luxury business.”
“She never mentioned it.”
“Because it failed.”
“How much did she lose?”
“Almost $200,000.”
“And the rest?”
“Mom covered it.”
“With what?”
He looked at me.
“With your money.”
I couldn't speak.
“You knew?”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“Two years.”
My eyes burned.
“You watched me pay for her mistakes.”
“I thought it would be temporary.”
“Two years isn't temporary.”
“I was going to pay you back.”
“When?”
“When things got better.”
“They got better for whom?”
He didn't answer.
I stood.
“What else?”
“Nothing.”
“Don't lie to me.”
He looked down.
“There was another investment.”
“What investment?”
“Real estate.”
“Whose?”
“Dad's.”
“Your father?”
“My mother.”
“She's divorced from him.”
“I know.”
“Then why was she investing his money?”
Ryan rubbed his face.
“Because they still work together.”
That sentence made everything click.
Evelyn wasn't simply a dependent mother.
She was part of the operation.
I remembered the empty plate.
The seafood.
The wine.
The smugness.
She hadn't been treating me like someone who couldn't afford dinner.
She had been treating me like an outsider.
Because I was.
They had their own financial world.
And I had been the ATM.
I looked at Ryan.
“Do you love me?”
He looked shocked.
“Yes.”
“Then why did you lie?”
“I was afraid.”
“Of me?”
“Of losing you.”
“You already did.”
His face collapsed.
“No.”
“Yes.”
I took off my wedding ring.
Placed it on the table.
He stared.
“What are you doing?”
“I need space.”
“Claire.”
“I don't know who you are.”
“I can fix this.”
“You've been saying that for years.”
He reached for my hand.
I stepped away.
Then my phone rang.
Michael.
I answered.
“Claire, we found the ownership records.”
“What did you find?”
“Harbor Crest isn't owned by Evelyn.”
“I know.”
“It isn't owned by Ryan either.”
I froze.
“Then who owns it?”
Michael hesitated.
“A trust.”
“Whose trust?”
“The Bennett Family Trust.”
I frowned.
“My husband's family?”
“Yes.”
“Who is the beneficiary?”
Michael paused.
“You.”
The room went silent.
I looked at Ryan.
He had heard.
“What?”
Michael continued.
“Claire, your name has been listed as the primary beneficiary for three years.”
I stared at Ryan.
He looked terrified.
“Why would my name be on a family trust?”
May you like
Michael's voice became quieter.
“That is exactly what we need to find out.”
