CHAPTER 4 — The Secret Lucas Never Expected
CHAPTER 4 — The Secret Lucas Never Expected
Three days later, Emily slept through the entire night.
It was the first uninterrupted sleep she'd had in years.
Noah laughed at breakfast.
He asked for pancakes.
He played with the family dog in my backyard.
The house felt peaceful.
Until my phone rang.
David.
"Barbara."
"What happened?"
"You should come."
"Now."
An hour later, Emily and I sat across from David inside a quiet conference room.
He placed a thick file on the table.
"I've spent the last forty-eight hours making a few phone calls."
Emily looked nervous.
"What did you find?"
David opened the file.
"I didn't investigate Lucas."
"I investigated his finances."
Emily frowned.
"Our finances?"
David slid several bank statements across the table.
Emily's expression changed instantly.
"I've never seen this account."
"You weren't supposed to."
"There are four accounts."
"Only one had your name."
Emily stared in disbelief.
Lucas had been secretly moving money for years.
Small amounts.
Never enough to attract attention.
Three hundred dollars.
Six hundred.
Nine hundred.
Always explained as business expenses.
David pointed to the totals.
"In five years..."
"...he transferred nearly two hundred and eighty thousand dollars."
Emily looked sick.
"Where did it go?"
David turned another page.
The account holder's name appeared.
Rachel Donovan.
Emily whispered it aloud.
"...Rachel?"
She recognized the name immediately.
"My college roommate?"
David nodded once.
"They've been financially connected for over four years."
Emily couldn't breathe.
"No..."
Then came photographs.
Restaurant receipts.
Hotel reservations.
Plane tickets.
Joint credit card statements.
Every piece fit together.
Rachel hadn't simply reappeared in Lucas's life.
She had been living a second life with him.
Emily buried her face in her hands.
"My best friend..."
"I introduced them."
David remained quiet until she looked up again.
"There's more."
Emily's voice was barely audible.
"Please tell me that's everything."
"I can't."
He placed one final envelope on the table.
"This came from Lucas's former employer."
Inside was a termination agreement.
Reason for dismissal:
Financial misconduct and falsification of company expense reports.
Emily stared at the page for nearly a minute.
"He told me he resigned."
"He lied," David said.
"He was given the opportunity to resign quietly instead of facing criminal charges after agreeing to repay the company."
Emily leaned back in complete shock.
"Our savings..."
"Were disappearing long before the divorce papers."
David closed the file.
"I believe Lucas wanted Emily to sign those divorce papers immediately because he knew this information was about to surface."
Silence filled the room.
Finally, Emily looked at me.
"I thought losing my marriage was the worst thing that could happen."
I reached across the table and squeezed her hand.
"No."
"The worst thing would have been staying."
Just then, David's phone buzzed.
He read the message once.
Then he looked up.
"It seems Lucas has finally realized something."
Emily frowned.
"What?"
David slid the phone across the table.
It contained a single message from Lucas.
'Tell Barbara I'll sign whatever she wants. Just don't let the investigators come after me.'
David met my eyes.
May you like
"He isn't afraid of losing the house anymore."
"He's afraid of losing his freedom."
