Chapter 9 - The Man on His Knees.
Samuel Price did not look frightened.
That was the first thing Victor hated about him.
The second was the calm way he removed his glasses and cleaned them while Marcus blocked the doorway.
"Twenty-seven years," Victor said.
Samuel put his glasses back on.
"Twenty-eight in November."
Victor crossed the room.
"Why is your handwriting on a forged transfer?"
Samuel glanced at Claire.
"Because your daughter has a talent for finding paperwork that doesn't concern her."
Claire stepped forward.
"Nine hundred thousand dollars from a relief foundation concerns me."
"Not if the transfer never completed."
"It did."
Samuel looked at Adrian.
"Did it?"
Adrian went pale.
Victor saw the reaction.
"What does he mean?"
No one answered.
Victor turned on his son.
"Adrian."
Adrian stared at the floor.
"The money was restored."
Claire's mouth fell open.
"You knew about the transfer?"
"Not at first."
"When?"
"Six weeks ago."
Claire took a step backward.
"Six weeks."
"Celeste said it was temporary."
"She stole foundation money."
"She said Samuel structured it as a bridge loan."
Samuel smiled faintly.
"And technically, it was repaid."
Victor looked from his lawyer to his son.
"You hid this from me."
Adrian's eyes filled with tears.
"I thought if I fixed it before the audit—"
"You thought hiding theft was fixing theft?"
"I loved her."
Victor's voice exploded.
"Stop using love as an alibi for cowardice!"
Adrian flinched.
Claire said nothing.
She had already spent all her anger on him in the chapel.
What remained was worse.
Disappointment.
Samuel leaned against the desk.
"This family loves moral theater."
Victor faced him.
"You helped her."
"I helped your son avoid a scandal."
"By forging my name?"
"By containing a mistake."
"And the note about the ceremony?"
Samuel's expression tightened.
Claire stepped closer.
"Approved after ceremony executes."
She pointed toward Adrian.
"What was supposed to execute?"
Samuel remained silent.
Victor understood before anyone spoke.
"The marital trust."
Adrian looked at him.
"What?"
Victor's face hardened.
"The trust I amended last year."
Claire remembered the family meeting.
Upon marriage, Adrian would gain direct control over a voting block in Hale Holdings that had previously remained under Victor's supervision.
It was designed to give Adrian independence.
It also gave a spouse enormous leverage in the event of divorce.
Claire looked at Samuel.
"Celeste knew."
Samuel said nothing.
"You told her."
Still nothing.
Victor stepped so close that Samuel had to lean back.
"Answer my daughter."
Samuel finally sighed.
"Celeste understood the trust before Adrian did."
Adrian's knees seemed to weaken.
"She married me for the shares."
Samuel looked at him almost pityingly.
"She married you because you were easy to manage."
Adrian struck him.
The punch sent Samuel into the edge of the desk.
Marcus caught Adrian before he could swing again.
"Enough."
Adrian struggled once, then collapsed.
He sank to his knees.
"I let this happen."
Claire looked at him.
"Yes."
He bowed his head.
"I'm sorry."
"Being sorry is the first honest thing you've done today."
Adrian covered his face.
Victor turned to Samuel.
"Where is the primary drive?"
Samuel wiped blood from his lip.
"I don't have it."
"Who does?"
Samuel looked toward the ballroom below.
"The bride."
Claire shook her head.
"She was searched."
Samuel smiled.
"You searched the bride."
May you like
He paused.
"You didn't search the wedding cake."
