Chapter 10 - The Side LetterMalcolm arrived at Claire’s office without Bianca.
His attorney came with him.
Sienna sat across the conference table.
No one pretended this was friendly.
The original document lay inside a clear evidence sleeve.
Claire had insisted it be preserved before anyone handled it further.
Sienna pointed at the line.
“‘Pressure point: Sienna prioritizes stability for Nolan over asset recovery.’”
Malcolm looked sick.
“I never saw that document.”
“You found it in your wife’s office.”
“Yes.”
“Your wife who was your girlfriend while we were married.”
Malcolm glanced at his attorney.
Then back.
“Yes.”
The word hurt less than Sienna expected.
Maybe because too much else had happened.
“Did Bianca help you plan the divorce?”
“No.”
“Did she know your strategy?”
“She knew I was unhappy.”
“That isn’t what I asked.”
Malcolm looked down.
“She knew I wanted a fast settlement.”
Sienna laughed once.
“A fast settlement?”
“Yes.”
“You fought me for six months.”
“I wanted leverage.”
Claire cut in.
“Malcolm, your attorney may want to stop you from volunteering details.”
His counsel nodded.
“He does.”
Malcolm leaned back.
“This is pointless.”
“No,” Sienna said. “For once, it isn’t.”
She looked at him.
“Did you tell Bianca I would give up money to protect Nolan from conflict?”
Malcolm said nothing.
That silence answered enough.
Sienna felt something collapse inside her.
Not love.
That had died earlier.
Something older.
The belief that certain memories had remained untouched.
Nolan’s infancy.
The desperate conversations about keeping life stable for him.
She had thought Malcolm shared that goal.
Maybe he had.
But he had also monetized it.
Jonah entered with another document.
“We found this in Westbridge’s archived legal files.”
Malcolm’s attorney frowned.
“What?”
“A side letter involving Larkspur.”
Copies were distributed.
The document granted Larkspur a “success participation” equal to two percent of certain project profits if Everline remained the principal capital provider through stabilization.
Sienna read slowly.
“Bianca gets more money if my firm stays invested.”
“Yes,” Jonah said.
Malcolm stared.
“I signed this?”
His attorney answered before anyone else.
“Your signature is here.”
“That wasn’t in the conflict waiver she showed me.”
“No.”
Sienna looked at the date.
Three months after her divorce.
She turned to Malcolm.
“You knew Bianca’s company had a hidden profit interest tied directly to Everline’s capital.”
“I don’t remember this.”
“Stop saying that.”
“I signed piles of documents.”
“You were chief executive.”
“I relied on counsel.”
Jonah spoke carefully.
“Westbridge’s outside counsel did not draft this.”
Malcolm looked at him.
“Who did?”
“Larkspur’s attorney.”
Sienna stared at Malcolm.
“And Everline was never informed.”
“No,” Jonah said.
Malcolm’s attorney rubbed his forehead.
“This makes the injunction case substantially worse.”
Sienna flipped the page.
There was a handwritten annotation beside the signature block.
Keep off main project closing list.
Initials.
M.V.
Malcolm Vale.
Malcolm whispered, “That’s not my handwriting.”
Sienna looked at him.
For the first time, she believed he might mean it.
Not because he deserved the benefit of the doubt.
Because she knew his handwriting.
The M looked wrong.
Claire noticed too.
“We get it examined.”
Malcolm’s attorney nodded.
“Yes.”
Jonah collected the documents.
Sienna sat back.
This was what she had feared.
The truth was becoming more complicated, not less.
Some evidence showed Malcolm knowingly concealed transactions.
Other evidence might have been manipulated.
That did not make Malcolm innocent.
It made accuracy more important.
The meeting ended without agreement.
In the elevator lobby, Malcolm stopped Sienna.
“Do you believe me about the handwriting?”
“I believe we should test it.”
“That isn’t what I asked.”
“It’s all you’re getting.”
“Sienna.”
She turned.
He looked older than he had a week earlier.
“I was terrible to you during the divorce.”
She said nothing.
“I was angry. I was selfish. I was having an affair.”
Still nothing.
“But I didn’t create that profile.”
“You gave Bianca the information.”
“I might have complained about you.”
“You told her where to hurt me.”
His face tightened.
“I didn’t think of it that way.”
“People who weaponize someone’s vulnerabilities rarely do.”
She walked away.
That night Bianca finally returned to the mansion.
Malcolm was waiting in the dining room.
The same room.
Nolan’s chair had been removed by the housekeeper after Malcolm asked her to put it away.
Bianca noticed.
“Where’s the booster seat?”
“Storage.”
“Getting sentimental?”
Malcolm placed the side letter on the table.
Her expression changed.
“Where did you get that?”
“So it’s real.”
“Of course it’s real.”
“Did I sign it?”
She looked at him.
“You’re asking me?”
“The handwritten note isn’t mine.”
Bianca laughed.
“You signed the agreement.”
“Did I?”
Her face hardened.
“You’re preparing to blame me.”
“I’m preparing to find out what happened.”
“Same thing.”
Malcolm stepped closer.
“Did you forge my initials?”
“No.”
“Did you use my credentials?”
“I had authorization.”
“Did you divide invoices to keep them below fifty thousand dollars?”
“I managed payments efficiently.”
“You copied me on the email.”
“And you replied ‘Fine.’”
He stopped.
She smiled.
“That one you remember?”
“Yes.”
“Good.”
Bianca walked toward the door.
“Because if you decide to sacrifice me to save your company, understand something.”
She turned.
“I have every text you ever sent me about Sienna.”
Malcolm’s jaw tightened.
“And every message about the divorce valuation.”
He stared.
Bianca’s voice became quiet.
“You’re not the victim in this story, Malcolm.”
May you like
Then she left him alone in the room where his son had screamed.
And for once, Malcolm had no argument.
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