Chapter 7 - The Signature Beside Her Name
The second signature belonged to Adrian.
He had signed a sworn declaration stating that Claire knew about the merger and had voluntarily surrendered any marital or shareholder-related claims.
The declaration included a notarized copy of a divorce settlement.
Claire looked at the document.
It named her.
It divided property.
It even stated that she had received independent legal advice from Miriam Shaw.
Miriam had never seen it.
The signature attributed to Claire was forged.
The notary seal belonged to a man who had retired two years earlier.
Adrian had created a divorce on paper because the real one had never been filed.
The false settlement served three purposes.
It concealed Claire’s possible marital claims.
It supported Adrian’s story that she had left Halcyon permanently.
Most importantly, it allowed him to tell Ardent that Claire could not challenge the transaction after closing.
Miriam had already obtained an emergency court order restricting the joint accounts because Adrian attempted to transfer $6.8 million from marital investment funds into a trust controlled by his sister.
The transfer request arrived six hours before the engagement party.
“Did you know about Celeste before tonight?” Claire asked.
“I suspected,” Miriam said. “But suspicion was not enough for emergency corporate action. The false approvals were.”
Claire looked through the glass wall toward Halcyon’s illuminated tower.
For years, she had protected Adrian from knowing how much power she held.
She wanted him to feel like a partner, not an employee of his wife.
He had interpreted her restraint as vulnerability.
The board scheduled an emergency meeting for eight the following morning.
Celeste and Adrian would be permitted to respond.
Until then, both were barred from company systems, offices, and employees.
Claire’s phone filled with messages.
Some were from confused engineers.
Some apologized for attending the engagement.
One came from Elena Park, Halcyon’s director of financial planning.
I have documents you need to see. Adrian told me you were mentally unwell. I didn’t believe him.
Claire read the message twice.
The phrase felt deliberately chosen.
Adrian had not merely described her as an ex-wife.
May you like
He had started building a story that she was unstable.
👉 The forged divorce could collapse the merger, but Elena’s files showed Adrian had prepared a plan to discredit Claire if she ever returned.
