Chapter 19
I looked at Vanessa.
“It identifies you and Caleb as husband and wife.”
The chairman stared at the document.
One of the attorneys leaned forward.
Caleb’s face lost its color.
“That’s private.”
“Then explain it privately to the independent investigators.”
He looked around the table.
“We were divorced.”
I felt something tighten in my chest.
It was the first time I had heard him acknowledge the marriage.
Vanessa turned toward him.
“What?”
Caleb’s head snapped in her direction.
“Vanessa, don’t.”
She stared at him.
“You told me there was no reason to worry about the paperwork.”
The room fell silent.
I could hear the low hum of the air conditioning.
Caleb’s expression became furious.
“Shut up.”
The chairman spoke sharply.
“Mr.
Mercer.”
Vanessa’s face went pale.
I looked at her.
“Did you divorce him?”
She pressed her lips together.
Caleb moved toward her.
“Don’t answer that.”
One of the attorneys stood.
“Mr.
Mercer, sit down.”
I felt a strange calm settle over me.
“Caleb, you told me you’d never been married.”
He turned toward me.
“Eleanor, this has nothing to do with you.”
I almost laughed.
“Nothing to do with me?”
My voice trembled.
“I married you.”
He looked away.
“I gave you three years of my life.”
“Lower your voice.”
“I am carrying your daughter.”
“You’re making this worse.”
I stood slowly.
My stomach felt heavy, and my knees were trembling, but I remained upright.
“No, Caleb.”
I looked directly into his eyes.
“You made this.”
For a moment, I remembered my wedding.
The roses.
The music.
The way my father had kissed my forehead before walking me down the aisle.
The way Caleb had promised to honor me.
The way I had repeated those promises without knowing there might already be another woman entitled to call him her husband.
I turned to Vanessa.
“You stood in my home.”
Her eyes filled.
“You smiled at my wedding pictures.”
She looked down.
“You watched me plan a nursery.”
My voice cracked.
“And you came to my father’s funeral holding his hand.”
Vanessa whispered, “I didn’t think it would happen like this.”
I stared at her.
“How did you think it would happen?”
She said nothing.
That silence told me more than another lie would have.
The chairman called for a recess.
The company’s counsel advised that the questions about the marriage would be addressed separately through the appropriate legal process.