Chapter 8 - THE PAPERS I NEVER SIGNED|
Arthur's office was quiet when I arrived with the old marital documents.
He read every page twice.
Then he called a specialist attorney.
“This is not a standard marital agreement,” he said finally. “Several provisions are unusual.”
“What do they mean?”
“They would have given Nathaniel authority over certain assets you might inherit. More importantly, one clause attempts to transfer future trust distributions into an account controlled by an Ashford subsidiary.”
“Would it have worked?”
“Not automatically. The trust has protections. But if you had signed every page and later confirmed the arrangement under pressure, it could have created a serious legal dispute.”
I remembered the evening Nathaniel had brought the documents home.
He had been unusually affectionate. He had ordered dinner, poured wine, and told me that marriage meant trusting one another.
I had signed the first page.
Then my mother called.
I left the room.
When I returned, Nathaniel had taken the papers away, saying he would finish the formalities another day.
I had forgotten about them.
Now I understood why.
Arthur examined the signature pages.
“You signed only the first two.”
“Is that enough to hurt me?”
“Not if we act quickly and preserve the original documents.”
I looked at him.
“Can you freeze the transfer?”
“We can seek an injunction. But we need evidence that someone attempted to use these documents.”
Arthur called the bank listed in the agreement. The account had been opened six months after our wedding.
The account was still active.
And it had received regular transfers from an Ashford subsidiary.
“Who owns it?” I asked.
Arthur looked at the file.
“An entity called Northbridge Advisory.”
The name sounded familiar.
I searched the company database on my phone.
Northbridge Advisory had been registered in Delaware. Its listed directors were two attorneys and a former Ashford executive.
But the beneficial owner was hidden.
Arthur looked up.
“Do you recognize this address?”
He showed me the registered office.
It was the same building where Nathaniel's private foundation operated.
My phone vibrated.
A message from Vanessa.
I FOUND SOMETHING IN NATHANIEL'S STUDY. HE'S NOT WHO YOU THINK HE IS.
A photograph followed.
It showed a document with a bank transfer confirmation.
The amount was $18 million.
The recipient was Northbridge Advisory.
The authorization signature belonged to Nathaniel.
But the date was only three days earlier.
I looked at Arthur.
“He's still moving money.”
Arthur closed the file.
“Then we are no longer dealing with an old family dispute.”
May you like
He reached for his phone.
“We are dealing with an active attempt to conceal assets.”
