Chapter 2: The Envelope With Her Name On It
I stood at that window for exactly four minutes.
I know because I watched the clock on my phone while I waited for the confirmation I needed.
It came at minute three.
A second message.
Same sender.
Three words:
*"It's all documented."*
I exhaled slowly.
Then I did something Derek would never have expected.
I called his father.
Not Derek.
Not Brenda.
His father — Gerald — who had sat at the far end of that dining table this morning and said absolutely nothing.
Who had looked at the floor when Derek threw that rag.
Who had not smiled the way Brenda smiled.
He picked up on the second ring.
"Chloe." His voice was low.
Careful.
"Gerald," I said.
"I need you to unlock this door.
And I need you to do it before Derek comes back."
Silence.
Then: "How much do you know?"
That was not the response of a man who thought his son had done nothing wrong.
"Enough," I said.
"The question is whether you want to be standing on the right side of this when it's over."
Another silence.
Longer this time.
Then I heard footsteps in the hallway.
Not Derek's.
Slower.
Heavier.
The deadbolt turned.
The door opened.
Gerald stood in the doorway, his face pale, holding something in his hand I had not expected to see.
An envelope.
Old.
Already opened.
With my name on it.
Written in Brenda's handwriting.
---
What was inside that envelope — and what had Gerald been hiding from Chloe before the wedding even happened?
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