Chapter Three

The Stranger With Answers

I barely slept.

I spent the night at Aunt Ritas place on her couch because I could not go back to my apartment. I knew Elena would probably be there by morning moving her things in and making herself at home in the life I had built over the three years.

Aunt Rita did not ask me questions. She just looked at me standing at her door with a bag of clothes I had grabbed from Chloes car. She just opened the door wider. Said come in. I loved her for that.

I could not sleep. Thought about the message I got. About the papers. About my signature on a document I had never seen before.

By eight thirty I was already outside the coffee shop on Birch Street. I almost did not go in. I stood outside for a minute telling myself this was a bad idea. I thought about all the surprises I had in the twenty four hours and I did not need any more.

Then I thought about Elenas voice. I remembered what she said: “By the time she figures it out it will be too late”. That made me go inside.

There was a woman sitting alone at a corner table. She was in her thirties with sharp eyes and she had a slim folder on the table in front of her. She looked up the moment I walked in like she already knew what I looked like.

"Sofia Wren " she said. It was not a question.

I sat down across her. "Who are you?" I asked.

"My name is Claire " she said. "I work for Ethan Voss." I had never heard of him before so I told her that.

"I know " she said. "That is part of the problem." She opened the folder. Slid it across the table toward me.

I looked down at the papers. It was the document from the email but now it was printed out and clear. My name was at the top. My signature was at the bottom. There were pages of language I did not understand but one line caught my eye because it had my fathers company name on it.

"What is this?" I asked.

"A transfer of rights document " Claire said. "It says you signed it six weeks ago and it transfers fifteen percent of your fathers company shares to someone."

I stared at her. "I never signed this " I said.

"No " she said. "You did not.. Someone made it look like you did. The signature is a good fake, Sofia. Good enough to fool people if they do not look closely."

My hands were flat on the table. They would have started shaking. "Who is the party?" I asked.

Claire turned to the page of the folder and pointed. I read the name of the company. Then I saw the name of the director. It was Daven.

I sat back in my chair. It all made sense now. The three years we were together the proposal, the wedding planning. It was all a plan. Daven was just using me to get to my fathers company. I had let him in. I had given him access to everything.

"Why does Ethan Voss care about this?" I asked. My voice was quieter than I intended.

"Because your fathers company and Voss Holdings have been talking about working for the last four months " Claire said. "If this document is used it will ruin the deal. Mr Voss has been trying to find out who is behind it. It led him to Daven Cole and then to you."

"So he sent you to warn me " I said.

"He sent me to ask you something " Claire said. She folded her hands on the table. "Mr Voss wants to meet you. In person. Today if possible."

I looked at her. "Why would I meet a man I have never heard of?" I asked.

"Because " Claire said, "he is the person who can stop this document from being used.. If he does not help your father could lose fifteen percent of everything he has built.. You will be the one who signed it away."

The coffee shop was quiet around us. Someone was ordering at the counter. A chair scraped behind me. It all seemed normal but my world was falling apart.

I thought about my father. How hard he had worked. I thought about what it would do, to him if he found out. Then I thought about Daven sitting in our apartment planning his move.

I looked at Claire. "When does he want to meet?" I asked.

"This afternoon " she said. "I can take you there now if you are ready."

I was not ready. I had not. I was wearing borrowed clothes.. I thought about what Claire had just told me and I thought about Elenas voice.

I said, "Give me ten minutes."

Claire. Looked back down at her folder. I pulled out my phone. Sat still for a moment. Then I opened my contacts. Found my fathers name. My finger hovered over his number. I needed to tell him. I did not want to scare him until I knew everything.

I dropped my phone face down on the table. First I would meet Ethan Voss. Then I would tell my father. I just had no idea that going to Ethan Vosss office that afternoon would change everything.