Chapter 2
"This property has been registered for a maximum mortgage of 3 million dollars," the bank manager said to me.
He pulled up the records and turned the computer toward me.
The borrower was Harris Group, under Edward's name.
And in the guarantor section, my signature was there.
The date was three years ago.
There was also a notarized authorization archived with the documents.
I recognized the authorization the moment I saw it.
Back then, Edward said he wanted to put my name on the apartment we were going to move into after the wedding, so I had to let him take care of the property stuff for me.
At the notary office, he pointed out every page to me.
"This is only for transferring the apartment. Nothing else," he said.
While the staff member was on the phone, he covered the last two pages with the rest of the documents, leaving the spot for my signature showing.
"Claire, do you think I'd lie to you?" he asked.
I signed it.
Now, the original purpose that said "marital home property transfer" was swapped out for "mortgage, loans, and guarantees."
"This was added later," I said, pointing at the page. "The font and the paper don't match."
The bank manager avoided my gaze.
He replied, "We'll have to check into it. The account manager who handled the loan for Harris Group is no longer with us."
"How did the mortgage registration get approved when I wasn't present?"
"The documents show it was handled by a trustee."
Basically, Edward tricked me into signing the authorization, then had someone change what it was for, and in the end, used that paper to put my father's house up as collateral.
After I signed the papers that day, he took me out for my dad's favorite pasta.
I was crying so hard that I couldn't touch my food. He squatted down next to me on the sidewalk and gently wiped my tears away.
"Claire, from now on, I'm your family," he said.
It turned out that the guy who kept saying he'd be my family was making sure I had nowhere left to run.
At that moment, Edward's mom called.
"Edward's only helping Liv fulfill a wish. Why are you stirring things up at the bank?" she snapped.
"Why is my house on the line for Harris Group?" I shot back.
"You're about to get married. Why bother keeping things separate now? The company was short on cash, and Edward didn't want you to overthink it."
"Was changing the authorization's content to keep me from overthinking it, too?"
She paused for a couple of seconds and let out a cold laugh.
"When your dad was in the hospital, wasn't it Edward who paid for the imported medicine? All these years, you've been living off our family, using everything he gave you, and now you can't bear to let go of one old house?" she demanded.
The medical bills had been my greatest source of guilt all these years.
I'd always thought Edward had paid for my dad's last round of treatment.
After hanging up, I went to the hospital.
The payment records showed the bills had been paid directly from my dad's account.
That so-called imported medicine? It wasn't listed in his treatment plan.
What Edward had done was pick up my dad's receipt at the payment desk and come back to the hospital room, holding me close.
"It's all taken care of. Don't worry," he'd said.
He'd never claimed he'd paid for the bills.
But he'd never explained anything. He'd stayed quiet and let me thank him.
At dusk, I went to the apartment to pick up my documents.
As I opened the door, Olivia's assistant was busy directing the movers, bringing in Olivia's belongings.
The master bedroom was draped with her dresses, and the dressing table was covered with photos of her and Edward taken in Glacieland.
The bedding I'd spent three months picking out had been thrown onto the floor.
"Ms. Warren needs a place to recover after getting back," the girl said, blocking my way. "Mr. Harris said you wouldn't be coming back anytime soon."
"This was supposed to be my home," I said.
"Mr. Harris is the only owner," she replied flatly.
She handed me a cardboard box.
Inside were my pajamas, my stomach meds, and the old pocket watch my dad left behind.
Then, Olivia called me on video.
On the screen, Edward was leaning in, tying her scarf for her.
"Claire, I picked out the room. Eddie said you're always so understanding and wouldn't hold it against someone who's sick," she said.
She raised her wrist to the camera. "He bought this bracelet for you. I told him you'd calm down once you got a gift, so he bought it."
She lightly tapped the sapphire with her fingertips.
"But after I wore it, I didn't feel like giving it back to you," she added.
She hung up without another word.
I dragged the box out and caught sight of a new wooden sign hanging in the entryway.
It wasn't those two's names carved on it.
It was the phrase I'd written myself back when the decoration started: [Claire's Home.]
But now, my name had been painted over in white.
And right beside it, a new name was added: [Olivia.]