Ashley arrived at the mansion that afternoon wearing a bright smile.
She carried a shopping bag from an expensive boutique and placed it on the dining table.
“I bought you something for the wedding,” she said. “You need to stop looking so stressed.”
Michael forced himself to smile.
“Thank you.”
She kissed his cheek.
“Have you been thinking about that woman again?”
Michael looked at her.
“Why would you call her that?”
Ashley laughed.
“Because that’s what she is now, Michael. Your ex-wife. You have a new life, and you need to stop feeling guilty about leaving her.”
“Did you know she was pregnant when I divorced her?”
For the briefest moment, Ashley’s expression changed.
Then she laughed again.
“Of course not. How would I know something like that?”
“I didn’t ask whether you knew about the babies. I asked whether you knew she was pregnant.”
Ashley placed her handbag on the table.
“Michael, what is this about?”
“Just answer the question.”
“No. I didn’t know.”
He watched her closely.
“And the messages between Emily and Daniel? Did you ever speak to him?”
Ashley stiffened.
“Why are you bringing him up?”
“Because I’m trying to understand what happened.”
She shook her head.
“Honestly, Michael, I can’t believe we’re discussing this again. Emily hurt you. She lied to you. She cheated on you. You made the right decision.”
“What if she didn’t?”
Ashley’s face hardened.
“What?”
“What if the evidence was false?”
Silence filled the room.
For several seconds, Ashley said nothing.
Then she reached across the table and took his hand.
“Michael, you’re exhausted. You’ve got a wedding in three days, and your former wife has suddenly appeared with two babies. Of course you’re confused.”
She spoke gently, but something about her tone unsettled him.
“You’ve worked so hard to rebuild your life. Don’t let Emily destroy it again.”
Michael slowly withdrew his hand.
“I’m not going to make any more decisions until I know the truth.”
Ashley stared at him.
Then she stood abruptly.
“I can’t believe you’re doing this to me.”
She picked up her bag and walked out.
Michael watched her leave.
He had expected anger.
What frightened him was the look she’d worn just before she went.
It wasn’t the expression of a woman who was surprised by his questions.
It was the expression of someone who was afraid he might discover an answer she had spent a long time hiding.
That evening, David called again.
“We’ve identified a possible witness,” he said.
“Who?”
“Your former office manager. She remembers Ashley asking questions about your marriage months before the divorce.”
Michael gripped his phone.
“What kind of questions?”
“She reportedly asked about your trust arrangements, your inheritance, and whether Emily had any ownership interest in the family property.”
Michael stared toward the office.
Emily had inherited a small property from her grandmother before their marriage. She had sold it years earlier and used part of the proceeds to help pay for their first home.
It had never been a secret.
But the family trust?
That was something Ashley had become unusually interested in during the months before the divorce.
Michael hadn’t thought much about it at the time.
Now, the pieces were beginning to fit together.
“Find out everything she asked,” he said.
David paused.
“Michael, there may be a financial motive behind all of this.”
Michael closed his eyes.
He had always believed Ashley loved him.
But perhaps she had been more interested in what he could provide than in the person he was.
And if she had manipulated him into abandoning Emily, then he had to face a painful truth.
He hadn’t merely been deceived. He had chosen to believe the worst about the woman who trusted him most.
PART 4: THE NIGHT EMILY DISCOVERED SHE WAS PREGNANT
While Michael was beginning to investigate, Emily was trying to survive.
After leaving the mansion, she had stayed with a friend for several weeks.
She had been heartbroken, embarrassed, and terrified.
Then, one morning, she woke with severe nausea.
At first, she thought it was stress.
When the symptoms continued, she visited a clinic.
The doctor smiled gently after reviewing her examination.
“Emily, you’re pregnant.”
Emily stared at her.
“What?”
“You’re pregnant. And according to the initial scan, there appear to be two babies.”
For several seconds, Emily couldn’t speak.
Twins.
Michael’s children.
Her first instinct was to call him.
She took out her phone and opened his contact.
Then she remembered the last conversation they had shared.
She remembered standing in their hallway while he accused her of betraying him.
She remembered asking him to listen.
She remembered him telling her she was nothing but a liar.
Still, she tried calling.
Her number had been blocked.
She sent an email.
No response.
She contacted his office and was told that all communication regarding their divorce had to go through the lawyers.
Emily eventually received a brief message from Michael’s legal representative asking her to stop contacting him directly.
She had no idea Ashley was involved in redirecting his calls and messages.
She tried one final time.
She wrote Michael a letter explaining that she was pregnant with twins and needed to discuss their future.
She sent it to the mansion.
The letter never reached him.
Ashley intercepted it.
Emily waited for a reply that never came.
As her pregnancy progressed, her savings dwindled.
She sold her jewelry to cover rent and medical expenses.
She applied for assistance and took whatever work she could manage.
When the twins were born, she named them Noah and Grace.
They were premature but healthy.
Emily cried when she first held them.
Not because she regretted their arrival, but because she knew how much their father might have loved them if he had been there.
She wrote another letter.
She sent photographs.
She tried contacting Michael’s lawyer again.
Each attempt failed.
Eventually, she stopped trying.
She had to concentrate on keeping her children safe.
By the time the twins were five months old, Emily had lost her rented room.
She had fallen behind on her bills and had nowhere stable to go.
She began staying in emergency accommodation when space was available and spending difficult days looking for work.
On the day Michael found her beside Highway 17, she had been trying to collect recyclable cans to earn enough money for food.
She had not planned to see him.
She had not planned to ask him for anything.
And when he finally appeared before her, she couldn’t bring herself to explain the truth.
He had already shown her what he believed about her.
She was no longer willing to beg him to believe something he should have wanted to understand.
PART 5: THE LETTER ASHLEY NEVER WANTED HIM TO FIND
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