ARIA'S POV“Mr Cross, please remain in the office.” The investigator's words came seconds after James told me he loved me. I hadn't even had time to understand what I felt before everything changed again.“Of course,” James replied. His face became unreadable. The warmth I'd seen minutes earlier disappeared, and his voice became calm and careful. He suddenly looked like a man I had never met.The lead investigator opened a file. “A dormant investment account connected to the original missing funds became active three years after you left Valère. Money was transferred from that account to Evelyn Cross.”“I wasn't aware the account had any connection to the missing money,” James said. “It remained part of a larger investment portfolio managed by my advisers.” The investigator frowned. “You expect us to believe you didn't know?”“I expect you to check the records,” James replied. “I won't guess about something I can't prove.” I watched him closely. This was the James who had survived Val

JAMES'S POV“Show me the agreement again.” I sat forward on the couch, staring at Aria. Daniel Mercer was a name I had spent five years trying to forget. Now it was sitting inside one of her old files from Marcus.Aria returned to the bedroom and came back with a thick folder. “I kept some documents after the divorce.” She placed several papers in front of me. “Marcus made me sign so many things that I stopped remembering most of them.”I found the agreement quickly. Daniel's name appeared at the bottom as an independent financial witness. The document was dated eighteen months after he supposedly disappeared from Valère.“Did you ever meet him?” I asked. Aria shook her head. “I don't know. Marcus handled everything financial. Sometimes he'd bring me into his office, put papers in front of me and tell me where to sign.”My jaw tightened. “He didn't let you read them?” Aria gave me a look. “Getting angry with Marcus won't answer our questions, James.” I forced myself to look back at th

ARIA'S POV“This is not a coincidence anymore.” I stood beside the couch, staring at James. “Daniel used a Valère card inside Marcus's family hotel. Tell me the investigators are contacting Marcus.”James rubbed his jaw. “The transaction only proves Daniel was at the hotel. It doesn't prove Marcus met him or even knew he was there.” I glared at him. “Why do you always talk like a lawyer when things get serious?”“Because assumptions are how I was blamed five years ago.” His answer stopped me. I looked away and forced myself to calm down. He was right, even if I hated it.“Marcus makes it hard for me to think clearly,” I admitted. “Every problem connected to him always became worse than I expected.” James watched me. “Do you want to stop looking into this and let the investigators handle it?”“No,” I answered immediately. “Julian knew about Lily. Someone took pictures outside my apartment. Daniel's name is in documents from my marriage. This stopped being your family scandal the moment

ARIA'S POV“How does eighteen million dollars disappear from a family without anyone reporting it?” I asked. Natalia stayed quiet on the phone for a moment. James sat across the room, listening without interrupting.“I don't know everything,” Natalia said. “Dad controlled the finances. Marcus got most of the records after he died. I only know what Marcus found recently.”“And what did he find?” I asked. “Dad transferred a large amount of money into an account managed by Valère shortly before the theft investigation. The money was split across different companies.”I rubbed my forehead. “Does it add up to eighteen million?” Natalia sighed. “Close enough. Marcus believes it's the same money.”“Then why didn't he go to the police?” I asked. Natalia became quiet again. “Some of those companies were never properly declared. If Marcus reports the money, people will start asking questions about taxes and where the investment came from.”Everything slowly made sense. Marcus may have spent yea

ARIA'S POV“Aria, are you even listening to me?” Tayo asked. I stared at Daniel Mercer's name beneath the photograph on my phone. I had stopped hearing him somewhere between his complaints about the children's collection budget and the cost of new fabric.I quickly turned my phone face down. James noticed. Of course he did. “Was that another journalist?” he asked. I shook my head. “I just need a minute to think.”James stared at me. “You do realise that's exactly what people say when they're avoiding a question?” I looked at him. “James, please.” His eyebrows rose. “Less than twenty-four hours ago, you accused me of deciding which truths you deserved to know.”The irony annoyed me because he was right. Tayo dropped his pen on the table. “Can both of you stop turning every conversation into relationship therapy and tell me what happened?”I picked up my phone and showed them the screen. James read the message first. His entire face changed. “No.” I folded my arms. “You haven't even ask

All Chapters of FROM HIS SILENT WIFE TO HIS GREATEST REGRET: Chapter 31 - Chapter 35

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