Chapter 5 - What Thomas Had Been Paying for in Secret
Thomas had loaned Claire money.
She never received it.
Two years into the marriage, Derek came to him privately.
He said Claire was struggling.
Medical bills.
Credit-card debt.
Therapy.
Thomas felt guilty about their estrangement.
He agreed to help without telling her.
$25,000.
Then $40,000.
Then another $35,000.
Total:
$100,000.
Derek told Thomas the money was keeping Claire stable.
Thomas never asked Claire because Derek said discussing finances triggered panic attacks.
Claire stared at him.
“I never had those debts.”
Thomas looked ill.
“I know that now.”
“Where did the money go?”
“I wired it to Derek.”
Claire stood.
“You gave him a hundred thousand dollars because he told you I was unstable?”
Thomas flinched.
“Yes.”
She walked to the window.
Everything Derek had told each of them was designed to prevent comparison.
To Claire:
Your father is ashamed of you.
To Thomas:
Claire is too fragile to speak about money.
To both:
Distance is safer.
Thomas took out copies of transfer confirmations.
The money went into an account controlled by Derek.
Two of the transfers occurred within days of CWD property purchases.
Dana later confirmed portions appeared to flow into down payments.
Claire’s father had unknowingly financed the company using the daughter Derek had cut him off from.
The cruelty of it made Claire physically nauseous.
But there was more.
Thomas had finally grown suspicious six months earlier.
He asked Derek for receipts.
Derek stopped answering.
Then Thomas received a text from Claire’s number.
Dad, stop interfering. I don’t want your money or you in my life.
Claire stared at the screenshot.
“I never sent that.”
“I believed you did.”
“Did you respond?”
“Yes.”
His reply was simple.
I’m sorry. I’ll respect that.
Claire covered her face.
For six months, she had wondered why her father had stopped sending even birthday cards.
Thomas had believed she demanded silence.
Dana asked whether Derek had access to Claire’s phone.
Claire laughed bitterly.
“Always.”
Passwords.
Cloud account.
Family plan.
He often answered messages when she was “too emotional.”
The pattern was becoming clear.
Derek did not merely isolate Claire by insulting her family.
He maintained the isolation administratively.
Messages.
Money.
Documents.
Access.
But the mystery of the letter remained.
If Derek wanted Thomas gone, why would he send a letter inviting him to the house?
Claire looked at the fake handwritten note again.
Come Wednesday night after eight.
That did not fit Derek’s previous pattern.
Thomas said, “Maybe he didn’t send it.”
Claire looked at him.
“Then who did?”
Neither had an answer.
Then Melissa called.
She had been helping Claire collect clothing from the house under an agreed arrangement.
Inside an old sewing box in the upstairs guest room, she found something.
A stack of blank envelopes.
A book of stamps.
And handwritten practice sheets.
Claire’s name repeated over and over.
The handwriting did not belong to Derek.
It belonged to someone else.
A woman Claire knew.
May you like
Derek’s office manager.
Sabrina Holt.
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