Chapter 6 - The Mistress Who Was Never the Real Enemy|
Sloane Mercer had imagined becoming Mrs. Callum Voss more times than she could count.
She imagined the mansion.
The jewelry.
The private jets.
The invitations.
The respect.
She wanted people to stand when she entered a room.
She wanted women to envy her.
She wanted men to fear upsetting her.
And most of all, she wanted Rosalind gone.
But now Rosalind was gone.
And Sloane had gained nothing.
Callum wouldn't answer her calls.
Her access to Voss Tower had been revoked.
The apartment he provided was being reviewed by his attorneys.
And someone had begun asking questions about Mercer Capital Partners.
Sloane sat on her sofa, staring at her phone.
Then the doorbell rang.
She opened it.
Two men stood outside.
Both wearing dark suits.
One held a leather folder.
"Miss Mercer?"
"Yes?"
"We represent the Voss family's outside investigators."
Sloane stiffened.
"What do you want?"
The man opened the folder.
"We'd like to request an interview concerning several financial transactions."
Sloane laughed nervously.
"I don't know anything about business."
"Then perhaps you can explain why your company received millions in payments from entities connected to the Voss organization."
Her face drained of color.
"I need my lawyer."
The investigator nodded.
"That would be appropriate."
Sloane closed the door.
Then she immediately called Victor Kane.
He answered after several rings.
"What?"
"They found the accounts."
Silence.
Then Victor cursed.
"How?"
"Callum's sons are investigating."
"Which one?"
"Gideon."
Victor went quiet.
Then he said:
"That one is dangerous."
Sloane swallowed.
"What do I do?"
"Nothing."
"Victor—"
"Listen carefully. You do not speak to anyone without counsel."
Sloane began crying.
"You promised me Callum would leave Rosalind."
Victor laughed.
"That was your part of the arrangement."
Her stomach dropped.
"What?"
"You were supposed to distract him."
Sloane stared.
"From what?"
"From the money."
She felt cold.
"You used me?"
Victor's voice hardened.
"You were very willing to be used when you thought you'd become Mrs. Voss."
Sloane covered her mouth.
Then Victor said:
"One more thing."
She swallowed.
"What?"
"If Gideon gets close to the original shipping records, tell him to stop."
"Why?"
Victor's voice became cold.
"Because the last person who opened those records disappeared."
The call ended.
Sloane stood motionless.
For the first time, she understood she had been part of something much larger than an affair.
And she was no longer sure she could escape it.
At the beach house, Rosalind sat beside the fireplace reviewing old financial records.
Gideon stood near the window.
Beckett examined documents on his laptop.
Piers paced.
"Mom, this isn't just about Dad's mistress," Gideon said.
Rosalind nodded.
"I know."
"Mercer Capital was created before the affair."
"Yes."
"And it received payments from companies connected to Victor Kane."
Rosalind looked toward the sea.
Victor Kane.
The man who had once threatened Callum's life.
The man whose disappearance had nearly destroyed their marriage fifteen years earlier.
She remembered that terrible winter.
Callum arriving home with blood on his shirt.
Gideon asking why there were police outside.
Beckett hiding beneath the dining table.
Piers crying in his crib.
Rosalind had taken the children upstairs.
Then she'd come back down and helped Callum wash the blood from his hands.
She never asked whose blood it was.
At the time, she believed silence protected the family.
Now she wondered what that silence had cost them.
"Mom?"
Beckett's voice pulled her back.
She looked up.
"What?"
He turned the laptop.
"We found another company."
Rosalind leaned forward.
A familiar name appeared.
Whitmore Maritime Holdings.
Her maiden name.
Whitmore.
Rosalind stared.
"What is this?"
Gideon looked at her.
"Did Grandpa ever own a shipping company?"
She frowned.
"My father had a small business before he died."
"How small?"
"Three vessels. A warehouse. Some contracts."
Beckett looked up.
"Mom, Whitmore Maritime was one of the original companies used to establish the Voss shipping network."
Rosalind nodded slowly.
"Yes."
Gideon hesitated.
"Then why does Victor Kane appear as a former shareholder?"
Rosalind went still.
"What?"
Beckett pointed to a scanned document.
"According to this, Victor Kane acquired a partial interest twenty-six years ago."
Rosalind stared.
Twenty-six years.
One year after Gideon was born.
The year Callum nearly lost everything.
The year her father died.
A cold realization settled inside her.
"What happened to my father's shares?"
Beckett looked uncomfortable.
"That's what we're trying to determine."
Rosalind stared at the documents.
For decades, she had believed Callum built his empire using the properties she inherited.
But perhaps those assets had been involved in a much older arrangement.
A secret her father took to his grave.
Then Gideon's phone rang.
He answered.
His expression changed.
"What?"
A pause.
"Are you certain?"
He ended the call.
Rosalind looked up.
"What happened?"
Gideon stared at her.
"Victor Kane has requested a meeting."
She went cold.
"With your father?"
Gideon shook his head.
"No."
"Then who?"
He swallowed.
"You."
Rosalind felt her heart pounding.
"Why?"
May you like
Gideon's voice dropped.
"Because he says he has proof that your father's death wasn't an accident."
