Chapter 6: The Secret in the Sealed File

Alexander Vance had no right to touch Eleanor Laurent’s sealed documents, yet someone had already given him access to information he was never supposed to possess.

Isabella stared at Michael Hayes across his office desk, struggling to understand what he had just told her.

“You’re saying Alexander requested my grandmother’s sealed file?”

Michael nodded. “Yesterday afternoon. He claimed he was acting on your behalf.”

“That’s impossible. I never authorized him to do anything.”

“I know. I rejected his request, but there’s something else you should see.”

Michael opened a drawer and removed a printed copy of the request. Isabella scanned the page, her stomach tightening when she noticed the signature at the bottom.

It looked like hers.

“That’s not my signature.”

“I suspected as much. Someone used your personal information to make the request appear legitimate.”

Isabella placed the paper down carefully. Alexander had not only lied about their marriage; he had apparently been using her identity without her knowledge.

“What’s inside the file?” she asked.

Michael hesitated. “Your grandmother left instructions that it should only be opened by you. She believed the information could put you in danger if it reached the wrong hands.”

“Then I want to see it.”

“Isabella, I need you to understand that once we open it, there may be no going back.”

She looked directly at him. “My life has already been turned upside down. I would rather know the truth than keep living in ignorance.”

Michael studied her for a moment before reaching for his desk phone.

“I’ll have it brought in.”

Twenty minutes later, a young assistant entered carrying a small black box secured with a silver lock.

Isabella recognized the handwriting on the envelope inside.

Her grandmother’s.

She had not seen Eleanor’s handwriting since the funeral, and for a moment, the sight brought back memories she had spent months trying to bury.

Michael placed the envelope in front of her.

“Your grandmother instructed me to let you read it privately, but she also requested that I remain present.”

Isabella carefully opened it.

The first page contained only a short handwritten message.

My dearest Isabella, if you are reading this, then someone has finally made a move against the Laurent family. Do not trust anyone who claims to be protecting your inheritance. Not even those who carry our family name.

Her fingers trembled.

She continued reading.

The next paragraph mentioned a financial transaction completed five years earlier, shortly before Alexander had entered her life.

A transfer of Laurent Holdings shares had been attempted through a private investment company. Eleanor had rejected it, but the document suggested that the person behind the offer had later found another way to gain access to the family business.

Isabella looked up.

“Who was behind the company?”

Michael turned a page and pointed to a name.

Vance Capital Group.

For several seconds, Isabella could not speak.

Alexander’s family had been trying to acquire Laurent Holdings before she even knew him.

“Did Alexander know about my inheritance when he approached me?” she asked.

Michael’s expression darkened. “I cannot prove that yet.”

“But you suspect it.”

“I suspect someone knew exactly who you were, even when you didn’t.”

A knock interrupted them.

Michael’s assistant appeared at the doorway, looking uneasy.

“Mr. Hayes, there’s someone here asking to see Miss Laurent. He says it’s urgent.”

“Who?”

The assistant glanced at Isabella.

“Alexander Vance.”

Isabella stood slowly.

Of all the people she expected to see that afternoon, Alexander was the last.

“Tell him I’m not interested,” she said.

Before the assistant could leave, Alexander’s voice came from the corridor.

“Isabella, I know you’re in there. Stop hiding behind your lawyer.”

Michael moved toward the door, but Isabella raised a hand.

“Let him in.”

Alexander entered wearing an expensive suit, his expression carefully arranged into concern. However, the moment his eyes landed on the black box, his composure slipped.

“What is that?” he demanded.

Isabella folded her arms. “Why are you so interested in my grandmother’s documents?”

“I’m trying to protect you.”

“From what? The truth?”

He glanced at Michael before lowering his voice. “You don’t understand what you’re getting involved in. That inheritance isn’t as simple as you think.”

“Then explain it.”

Alexander hesitated.

Isabella stepped closer. “You used my signature to request access to a private document. Your family’s company tried to acquire my grandmother’s shares. And now you’re telling me you want to protect me?”

His jaw tightened.

“You should leave this alone.”

“That’s not an answer.”

“Isabella, please. Whatever you think happened between us, I never wanted you hurt.”

She almost laughed.

“You had six years to care whether I was hurt. You chose not to.”

Alexander reached for her arm, but Michael immediately stepped between them.

“Mr. Vance, this is a private legal meeting. I suggest you leave.”

Alexander ignored him, his eyes fixed on Isabella.

“Dominic Sterling has no intention of helping you. He’s using you to settle an old family agreement.”

“At least he’s honest about what he wants.”

Alexander’s expression hardened.

“You really think a man like Dominic would marry a woman like you without wanting something in return?”

Before Isabella could respond, another voice came from the doorway.

“She’s right to ask what I want. Unfortunately, you seem to have forgotten that you have no right to question her decisions.”

Dominic Sterling stood at the entrance, his dark eyes fixed on Alexander.

Isabella hadn’t expected him.

Neither had Alexander.

Dominic walked into the office, placed a folder on Michael’s desk, and looked at Isabella.

“I believe you should see this before making any decisions about our agreement.”

Isabella opened the folder.

Inside was a photograph taken five years earlier.

Her grandmother stood beside Richard Sterling and another man whose face had been partly hidden by the camera angle.

But the date written beneath the photograph made Isabella’s blood run cold.

It was taken three days before Alexander secretly married Vanessa.

And on the back, Eleanor had written six words:

The betrayal began with your father.