Page 136 of Theirs to Corrupt

I understand their protectiveness, especially since Axel’s texts are coming faster and more furiously, but being under constant surveillance is wearing me down.

Today Torin and Mira are off, and that leaves me with Arielle, the agent who’d been with me in the bridal room at the Bella Rosa. Since Pax isn’t comfortable with me just having one agent, I wouldn’t be surprised if he followed us.

Still, when I glanced out the back window of the SUV, I hadn’t seen his motorcycle.

Celeste takes a chair. Then without further pleasantries, she says, “You’re going to be a very wealthy woman when you turn twenty-five.”

“I’m…”Speechless.

Honestly I didn’t expect my inheritance to amount to much.

Before the information has fully sunk in, Celeste goes on. “What do you know about your parents’ home?”

“Axel met with the lawyers. When he came back, he told me that the house was mortgaged, and that my dad’s business was pretty well bankrupt when…when the accident happened.” I clear my throat. “Evidently he made some bad decisions.”

“So you’d be surprised to learn the house was fully paid for and in the clear when they passed?”

“It was…” My ears start to buzz. “I…”

“And that the business was on solid ground?”

I grip my purse harder, as if my life depends on it. “What are you saying?”

She pulls a file folder from beneath her ever-present yellow legal pad. “Did you sign this?” She extracts a document and slides it toward me.

I study the blue ink. It’s close to my signature but not exact. “No.”

“It’s a second mortgage.”

Stunned, I drop the paper, and it flutters to the table. “I know nothing about it.”

“Fraud,” she suggests.

“And you said my father’s firm wasn’t bankrupt?”

“Quite the opposite.”

I’m sick. How many betrayals do I have to go through?

“There’s something else you should know.” Her voice is calm and careful.

Trying to gather my composure, I sit back.

“Link has been in touch with the lawyer overseeing your trust.”

Of course he has. I shouldn’t be surprised, but somehow I still am.

Frustrated, I squeeze my eyes shut.

“As your spouse, he has a right to do so.” She waits for a moment before adding, “He wants the funds to be transferred to a different management company.”

Fury rises in me. “Merritt Sovereign,” I guess.

“You’re correct.”

For the next fifteen or twenty minutes, Celeste explains options to me, including the terms of the trust. I can apply for funds for living expenses and education. Anything beyond that must be approved. “I have the means to support myself?”

“It will all depend on the definition of living expenses and what’s included. If you wish to live independently, we’ll also request funds from your husband.”

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