Chapter 4 - The Hospital PlanBy evening, Penelope was no longer thinking about divorce.
She was thinking about survival.
Eleanor insisted she relocate somewhere Gabriel did not control.
Not the marital home.
Not a hotel booked under her name.
Not even Harold Bennett's house.
They chose a small guest cottage on a private property owned by Eleanor's family outside Indianapolis.
Daisy stayed with her under an emergency child-services placement while formal review continued.
Penelope barely slept.
Every sound made her sit upright.
At three in the morning, Daisy entered her bedroom carrying the stuffed rabbit.
“Can I stay?”
Penelope lifted the blanket.
Daisy climbed beside her.
For several minutes they said nothing.
Then Daisy touched Penelope's stomach.
“Is the baby scared?”
Penelope almost smiled.
“No.”
“How do you know?”
“Because his mom is trying very hard not to be.”
Daisy considered that.
“What's his name?”
Penelope hadn't told anyone.
“Samuel.”
“Can I call him Sammy?”
“If he likes it.”
“How will we know?”
“He'll probably scream when he doesn't.”
Daisy giggled.
The sound felt like a little light returning.
Then she became serious.
“Daddy used to be nice.”
“I know.”
“Why isn't he nice anymore?”
Penelope stared at the ceiling.
How could she answer?
Gabriel had never been simple.
He could be ruthless with business competitors and infinitely gentle with Daisy.
He had once driven two hours because Penelope mentioned missing a pie from a bakery near her childhood home.
He had slept beside her hospital bed during a miscarriage four years earlier.
For three days, he had barely left.
That man existed.
So did the man who tried to manipulate her divorce.
People could contain both love and cruelty.
That was the painful part.
“Sometimes people become so afraid of losing control,” Penelope said softly, “that they hurt the people they love trying to keep control.”
Daisy whispered, “Daddy is scared?”
“I think so.”
The next morning they learned why.
Eleanor brought an accountant named Mason Reed.
He had reviewed the trust's holdings overnight.
Ward Meridian wasn't just valuable.
It controlled three freight terminals Gabriel's companies depended on.
If Penelope took control and terminated those contracts, Gabriel's business empire could lose access to critical transportation routes.
“He needs you,” Mason said.
Penelope shook her head.
“He wanted to divorce me.”
“He needs your signature more than he needs the marriage.”
There was worse.
Gabriel's organization owed seventeen million dollars to a private lender.
The debt came due six weeks after Penelope's expected delivery.
If he lost access to Ward Meridian's network, refinancing would become almost impossible.
“So Bianca wanted my assets?”
Mason nodded.
“Likely.”
Penelope remembered Bianca laughing in court.
She had thought Bianca believed she had won a rich man.
Maybe Bianca believed she had won an empire.
Around noon, a call came from an unknown number.
Penelope almost ignored it.
Eleanor stopped her.
“Speaker.”
Penelope answered.
“Hello?”
Nothing.
Then breathing.
“Penelope.”
Gabriel.
Daisy looked up from the sofa.
Penelope's chest tightened.
“You're not supposed to contact me.”
“I know.”
“Then why are you calling?”
“Because Bianca is dangerous.”
Penelope almost laughed.
“You protected her.”
“I made a mistake.”
“You made hundreds.”
A pause.
“I never told her about the trust.”
“Then how did she know?”
“I don't know.”
Penelope looked toward Eleanor.
“Daisy heard her talk about the hospital.”
Gabriel went silent.
Penelope's fear grew.
“What was supposed to happen at the hospital?”
“Nothing.”
“Don't lie.”
“Penelope—”
“Tell me.”
Gabriel exhaled.
“I arranged for a physician to evaluate your mental condition after the birth.”
Penelope's skin went cold.
“For what?”
“Postpartum instability.”
“I haven't even given birth!”
“I know.”
“You were planning to declare me unstable before knowing whether I was?”
“I was trying to establish custody leverage.”
Eleanor's expression became murderous.
Penelope whispered, “You were going to take my son.”
“I wasn't going to hurt you.”
“You were going to take my children.”
Silence.
Then Gabriel said something unexpected.
“I canceled it.”
“When?”
“After you fell.”
Penelope closed her eyes.
Because he had seen where manipulation could lead.
Too late.
But perhaps not completely too late.
“Where is Bianca?”
“I don't know.”
“Do you expect me to believe you?”
“No.”
That answer surprised her.
Gabriel continued.
“But I know where she may go.”
“Where?”
“My downtown office.”
“Why?”
“There is a safe.”
“What is inside?”
He hesitated.
“Records.”
“Of what?”
“My business.”
Penelope understood immediately.
Illegal business.
Evidence.
“If Bianca takes those records?”
“She can destroy me.”
“Maybe you deserve it.”
“I probably do.”
The words hung there.
It was the first time Gabriel had admitted anything close to guilt.
Then his tone changed.
“Penelope, listen carefully. Bianca didn't become my mistress because she loved me.”
Penelope said nothing.
“She was placed near me.”
“By whom?”
“I don't know.”
“Shepherd isn't her original name.”
Eleanor began typing on her laptop.
Gabriel continued.
“I discovered it yesterday.”
“Why didn't you tell anyone?”
“Because before I could, Daisy disappeared.”
Penelope looked at Daisy.
“What?”
“I didn't send Daisy to relatives.”
The room froze.
Penelope stared at the phone.
“You told me—”
“I lied.”
“Where was she?”
“Bianca took her.”
Daisy's face changed.
Gabriel heard Penelope's breathing.
“She told me Daisy was safe and threatened to disappear with her if I didn't continue the divorce.”
Penelope could barely speak.
“You let me believe you took her.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because if Bianca thought I told you the truth, Daisy was the leverage.”
Penelope felt fury rise.
“You should have called the police.”
“You think men like me trust police?”
“That's your problem!”
“Yes.”
Gabriel's voice cracked.
“That's exactly my problem.”
Nobody spoke.
Then Gabriel said:
“I spent my life building a world where I trusted fear more than law.”
A pause.
“And my daughter paid for it.”
Daisy's eyes filled.
“Daddy?”
Gabriel stopped breathing.
“Daisy?”
She moved closer to the phone.
“Did you come looking for me?”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“Every minute.”
Daisy started crying.
Gabriel's voice broke.
“I am sorry, sweetheart.”
Penelope looked away.
Then Eleanor's laptop chimed.
She stared at the screen.
“What?”
Eleanor turned it.
They had found Bianca's real identity.
Bianca Shepherd had been born Bianca Vescari.
Her father had died fifteen years earlier.
And according to a federal racketeering case, he had once been Thomas Ward's business partner.
Penelope's father.
Bianca wasn't trying to steal Gabriel's empire.
May you like
She believed Penelope's father had stolen hers first.
And now she wanted everything back.
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