Chapter 16 - CAROLYN'S SECRET|
Sarah refused to believe the discovery without hearing Carolyn's explanation.
They met in a private conference room with Elena present. Carolyn arrived looking composed, but her hands shook as she sat down.
"I didn't authorize those payments," she said immediately.
"Your signature is on the transfer."
"Then someone forged it."
"That is what we'll investigate."
Carolyn looked relieved that Sarah had not already condemned her.
She explained that her late father had managed several charitable trusts connected to the Montgomery and Volkov families. After his death, she had inherited responsibility for a small account but delegated its administration to a financial adviser.
The account had been dormant until two weeks before the gala.
"Who activated it?"
"Daniel Whitmore's office requested a compliance review. They said the account needed to be brought into order before a merger."
"Which merger?"
Carolyn hesitated.
"A private acquisition involving a company that owns the old Volkov residence."
Sarah exchanged a glance with Elena.
The old blue room.
The missing correspondence.
The house that had changed hands through anonymous companies.
Everything was connected.
Carolyn gave Elena permission to examine the account records and contacted her own attorneys. Within days, the investigation revealed that the transfer authorization had been submitted electronically using credentials stolen from Carolyn's financial adviser.
She was not the mastermind.
She was another person whose identity had been used.
"Why would someone frame me?" Carolyn asked.
"Because you had access to the account," Elena replied. "And because your reputation would make the transaction appear legitimate."
Carolyn sat silently before looking at Sarah.
"I used to think you were lucky. Richard chose you, and you entered a world I had spent my whole life trying to belong to."
"I never wanted your world."
"I know that now."
Carolyn admitted that she had suspected Beatrice's treatment of Sarah was cruel but had remained silent because she hoped to marry Richard. Her silence had not caused the original conspiracy, but it had helped the family maintain its habits.
"I'm sorry," she said.
Sarah believed she meant it.
That did not make them friends, but it allowed them to work together.
The financial records led to a storage facility in New Jersey rented under a company associated with Daniel Whitmore. Inside, investigators found archived correspondence, medical records, and several sealed boxes.
One box contained a ledger with a list of names.
Maria Conti.
Evelyn Hart.
Katarina Volkov.
Sarah Montgomery.
Olivia Hale.
Beside each name was a date and a code.
At the bottom, in red ink, someone had written:
Phase Two begins when the daughters reunite.
Sarah read the sentence twice.
May you like
The reunion had not ended the secret.
Someone had been waiting for it.
