Chapter 13 - Trevor’s OfferTrevor requested mediation.
Grace recommended attending.
“Why?”
“Because people reveal things when they believe they’re negotiating.”
Elise sat across from Trevor three days later.
Two attorneys separated them.
Trevor looked tired now.
Not defeated.
Just less polished.
He began with the marriage.
“I never intended for this to become what it became.”
Elise said nothing.
“I cared about you.”
Still nothing.
Trevor sighed.
“I know you don’t believe that.”
“No.”
His eyes tightened.
“I’m willing to resolve the divorce quietly.”
Elise almost smiled.
“How generous.”
Trevor’s attorney slid a proposal across the table.
Trevor would waive any claim to the mansion.
In exchange, Elise would provide a cash settlement of $3 million.
She would also agree not to make public statements linking Trevor to criminal activity unless required by law.
Grace pushed the document back.
“No.”
Trevor looked at Elise.
“You should consider what happens if this becomes public.”
“It already is becoming public.”
“Not the affair.”
Elise stared.
“Do you think I care?”
“Ward & Finch’s clients might.”
“You mean you’re threatening to embarrass me.”
“I’m describing reality.”
“No. You’re using shame again.”
Trevor’s expression cooled.
Elise continued.
“You thought I would hide what happened because Naomi is my sister.”
Trevor leaned back.
“You always cared about appearances.”
“You really don’t know me.”
“I know you better than anyone.”
“No. You studied me.”
For the first time, he looked unsettled.
Grace intervened.
“What happened to the executive authorization originals?”
Trevor’s attorney said, “My client denies possessing them.”
Elise laughed.
“Naomi handed them to him.”
Trevor looked at her.
“Naomi says many things when she’s frightened.”
“She also saved your messages.”
A flicker.
Tiny.
But there.
Trevor folded his hands.
“Naomi is facing serious exposure.”
“That’s why you threatened her.”
“I warned her.”
“About the crime you built in her name.”
Trevor stopped smiling.
There it was again.
The man beneath the husband.
“You think Naomi is innocent?”
Elise’s voice remained steady.
“No.”
That surprised him.
“She betrayed me. She signed documents she should have questioned. She helped you steal from the company because she wanted to believe I deserved it.”
Trevor stared.
“But she’s telling the truth now.”
“And you think that redeems her?”
“That’s between me and Naomi.”
Trevor leaned forward.
“You’ll never trust her again.”
“Probably not the way I used to.”
“Then why protect her?”
Elise studied him.
Because Trevor truly did not understand.
People were only valuable to him while useful.
He could not imagine accountability without destruction.
“I’m not protecting her from consequences.”
Elise looked him directly in the eyes.
“I’m protecting the truth from you.”
Silence.
Grace asked about Calder Rowe Capital.
Trevor’s attorney immediately objected.
That was enough.
Elise saw it.
“You were preparing to sell Ward & Finch.”
Trevor said nothing.
“To Calder Rowe.”
His attorney interrupted.
“This meeting is about dissolution of marriage.”
Elise ignored him.
“You wanted the board to remove my control, create a crisis and force a sale.”
Trevor’s calm began to fracture.
“You have no idea what that company needs.”
“You mean what you need.”
“Your mother built an inefficient monument to herself.”
Elise froze.
Trevor realized he had gone too far.
But the words were already there.
“You hated her,” Elise whispered.
“I respected her.”
“You hated that she saw you.”
Trevor’s eyes hardened.
“Cecilia was an arrogant woman who thought inheritance made her smarter than everyone around her.”
Elise stood.
Grace began packing documents.
The meeting was over.
Trevor called after her.
“Elise.”
She stopped.
His voice softened again.
That familiar voice.
The one from the funeral.
“Don’t destroy your family over a company.”
Elise turned.
“You slept with my sister, stole company money, forged my emails and tried to turn my mother’s estate against me.”
Trevor said nothing.
“You destroyed the family.”
She walked toward the door.
Then Trevor spoke again.
“You still don’t know everything Cecilia did.”
Elise stopped.
Grace looked back.
Trevor smiled faintly.
“There’s a reason your mother never finished that investigation.”
Elise turned.
“What are you talking about?”
Trevor only adjusted his cuff.
“If Grace hasn’t told you by now, maybe you should ask her.”
May you like
And when Elise looked at Grace—
Grace’s expression told her Trevor had found another wound to open.
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