Chapter 2
At 7 a.m., Thomas had breakfast ready.
He set a glass of milk in front of me and slid the jewelry box over. "You can open it now."
I opened the box.
Inside was a necklace with tiny diamonds, the same style as the one in the video.
The difference was, the one Emily wore was encrusted with big diamonds, but this one only had small decorative stones.
I flipped over the tag and saw the standard model number.
Thomas watched my expression and asked, "Do you like it?"
"How much did it cost?"
He looked surprised that I'd ask about the price, pausing before saying, "A gift is about the thought, not the price. Why ask?"
"Just curious."
"I originally wanted another style, but the store was out of stock. This one's more suitable for everyday wear, so I picked it up instead."
He was so natural, as if he hadn't put a necklace around Emily's neck last night.
Thomas came up behind me and picked up the necklace. "Let me put it on for you."
As he leaned in, that fruity perfume wafted over again. Emily always wore this perfume. Four years ago, when she returned for a party, I caught a whiff of it.
The cold chain touched my neck, and I turned my head to avoid it. "Just leave it. I don't feel like wearing it today."
"Claire, you've been acting strange since last night." Thomas put the necklace back in the box and took hold of my shoulder. "Did you throw out the flowers because I had to go on a last-minute business trip?"
"Didn't you say I was allergic?"
His fingers suddenly tightened.
I looked at him. "When did I ever say I was allergic to roses?"
The dining room fell silent.
Thomas let out a quick laugh. "I guess I remembered it wrong. Last year, you kept sneezing whenever you smelled pollen, so I thought you were allergic."
"We never bought roses last year."
"Maybe it was at the company party," he said, handing me the milk. "Things have been crazy lately, and I must've gotten it mixed up."
He glanced at his phone, not giving me a chance to ask more.
When the screen lit up, I saw the caller ID show a single letter.
He walked out onto the balcony, closed the glass door, and answered the call.
A few minutes later, he came back.
He grabbed his coat and said he had to head to the office for an urgent issue with the overseas project. "Don't forget to eat breakfast. I'll be back tonight to spend time with you."
Before leaving, he noticed the necklace was still on the table, so he slipped the box into my bag himself. "Don't lose it. It's our fifth anniversary gift."
After the door closed, I took out the jewelry box and locked it in the bottom drawer of my study.
That drawer also held the gifts he'd given me over the years.
For our third anniversary, he gave me a bracelet that didn't fit, saying the salesperson recommended it. Later, I found out that was the size Emily always wore.
For our fourth anniversary, he gave me a bottle of perfume. I used it less than three times, but he never noticed the scent had changed.
I kept all those things, thinking that because the gifts weren't to my taste didn't mean there was anything wrong with our relationship.
They were neatly arranged together, like a truth that had been waiting for me all along.
At 10 a.m., Sophie sent me a preliminary list with some items highlighted in red.
Over the past four years, three of Thomas's main business channels had been offering suspiciously generous deals.
The partners were all registered in different locations, with different managers, but every payment wound up in the same offshore investment company.
That company was founded exactly three months after Emily came back to the country.
Sophie messaged me again: [There should be some supplementary agreements in the company's internal files. You need to check them yourself, and the sooner the better.]
I closed my laptop and grabbed my car keys.
Before I left, my phone buzzed with a message from Thomas: [What do you want for dinner tonight? I'll try to get home early.]
I didn't reply.
Fifteen minutes later, he sent a screenshot of a restaurant reservation for 7 p.m., with a note saying it was to make up for our anniversary.
At the same time, Sophie sent over a fund flow chart.
The largest concession in the chart happened last night.
The amount was 8 million dollars, and the final beneficiary was Emily.
I saved the screenshot and drove to the office.