Chapter 15 - The Forgotten Brother
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I slid into the vinyl booth across from Marcus, keeping my hand securely wrapped around the pepper spray in my pocket. I had only met Marcus once, briefly, at my wedding. Brenda had strictly forbidden anyone from mentioning his name, claiming he was a degenerate gambler who had tried to ruin the family.
"Why are you here, Marcus?" I asked, keeping my voice low. "If this is a trick by your mother to get me to sign over the apartment—"
Marcus let out a dark, humorless chuckle that sounded exactly like Luke’s.
"My mother would rather walk barefoot across burning coals than ask me for a favor," Marcus replied bitterly. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a thick, manila envelope, sliding it across the sticky table toward me.
"Your husband didn’t just forge your signature, Hannah," Marcus whispered, leaning in closer. "He forged mine too. Ten years ago."
I stared at the envelope, then slowly reached out and opened the flap. Inside were dozens of bank statements, legal affidavits, and a copy of his father's original will.
"They told you I stole from the business, right?" Marcus asked, his eyes burning with years of suppressed rage. "That I was a thief who ran away in the middle of the night?"
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I nodded slowly. "Brenda said you drained the accounts."
"I didn't drain anything," Marcus said, tapping the documents. "Brenda and Luke did. They forged my signature on a massive corporate loan, took the cash to save Brenda's failing investments, and pinned the entire fraud on me. When I tried to go to the police, Oscar, who is a notary, falsified documents showing the money went into my accounts. They threatened to have me arrested if I didn't disappear."
