Chapter 6 - THE WOMAN WHO SIGNED FOR A GHOST
The assistant's name was Helen Mercer. She had worked in Adrian Vale's office for seven years and had the careful, exhausted manner of someone who had spent too long fixing problems she hadn't created.
She met Vivian and Miriam at the prosecutor's office, with an investigator present. Helen kept her hands folded on the table, twisting a plain gold ring around her finger.
"Mr. Vale told me Mrs. Draven had died," she said. "He said there had been an accident overseas and the family was keeping it private until the estate paperwork was complete."
Vivian felt the blood drain from her face. "When?"
"Six weeks ago."
"I was living in that house six weeks ago."
Helen looked down. "I know that now."
"How could you believe him?"
"He showed me a document with a seal and a signature. He said the family had arranged a confidential transfer because you had left instructions in your will. He said if I asked questions, I'd be accused of leaking private information."
Miriam leaned forward. "Did you see an actual death certificate?"
"No. Only a summary sheet and a draft of an estate notice. I was told the original documents were with the family's attorneys."
The investigator asked Helen to describe the paperwork in detail. She did. She had created a transfer package that moved a portion of the Draven Children's Fund's investment portfolio into Northstar Maritime Holdings. The transfer was supposed to be approved by Vivian as a foundation director. When Helen questioned why a deceased woman needed to sign a current authorization, Adrian told her the signature had been obtained before the accident and that the date on the document would be adjusted by the legal team.
"I thought it was wrong," Helen said, voice shaking. "But he told me the transaction was already approved and that my job was to prepare the files. I did it. I should have refused."
"Why are you coming forward now?" Vivian asked.
"Because yesterday he asked me to destroy the working copies. He said you had disappeared and would never be found. Then he told me to prepare another notice, this time saying you and the baby had died during a medical emergency."
The room went silent.
Vivian placed both hands over her stomach. For a moment she could not hear anything except the blood pounding in her ears.
Miriam asked the investigator for a short break. Outside the room, Vivian leaned against the wall and tried to breathe. She had feared Matteo might force her back into the mansion. She had feared Adrian might use the records to ruin her. She had not imagined that someone had been preparing a story in which she and her unborn child simply ceased to exist.
"He's trying to erase us," she whispered.
"He's trying to erase a witness," Miriam corrected gently. "That distinction matters. It means we know what he's afraid of."
Helen handed the investigator a small encrypted drive containing drafts, emails, and a calendar entry for a meeting with a private records service. The files had been copied before Adrian ordered her to destroy them. She had kept them because she knew the paperwork was wrong and had been afraid that she would eventually be blamed.
One email included a line from Adrian to an outside consultant: Once the wife is recorded as deceased, the remaining signature dispute becomes an administrative matter.
The investigator requested warrants for the relevant accounts and records. Helen agreed to provide a formal statement and testify if required. Her cooperation did not erase her role in preparing the documents, but it gave the case a new direction.
That afternoon, Miriam received a message from Matteo's attorney. Matteo wanted to speak with Vivian in person and said he had information about Adrian's plan.
Vivian's first response was no.
Then she thought about the fake death notice, the forged signature, and the fact that Adrian had been able to reach places where she believed she was safe. If Matteo knew something, she needed the information. She did not need to trust him to hear it.
The meeting was arranged in a government building with attorneys present and security outside the room. Matteo arrived without his usual entourage. He looked as if he hadn't slept. His black suit was immaculate, but the skin beneath his eyes had darkened.
He stood when Vivian entered.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then his gaze dropped to her stomach. "Is he all right?"
"He's not yours to use as an opening line."
Matteo absorbed the rebuke without protest. "I deserve that."
"You deserve much worse."
"I know."
"Do you?" Vivian sat across from him. "Did you know Adrian was preparing to declare me dead?"
"No. I knew he was moving money. I knew he had used your name on documents. I did not know he'd gone this far."
"You knew enough to ignore it."
His silence answered her.
Matteo rubbed his hands together, an uncharacteristic gesture of uncertainty. "I thought I could control it. I thought if I let Adrian finish the transfers, I could trace where the money went and cut him out afterward."
"You let him use a charity to steal money because you thought you could outsmart him."
"I told myself it was temporary."
"And you let me live in that house while you watched me."
His eyes lifted. "I did not order anyone to watch you."
"Then explain the invoices for residential risk management."
He looked toward his attorney, who said nothing.
Matteo's expression hardened with the recognition of a trap he had helped build. "I approved security reviews after threats against the company. I didn't ask enough questions about how the reviews were carried out. That's on me."
Vivian stood. "You're right. It is."
"Vivian, please. Let me give the investigators everything I have."
"Give it to them. Not me."
She walked out before he could answer.
In the corridor, Miriam told her that Matteo's offer could help, but his statements would have to be corroborated. He was still a man with reasons to protect himself. His regret might be genuine; it did not make him safe.
Vivian nodded. She was beginning to understand that the truth did not require her to decide whether Matteo was a monster or a good man. He could have done loving things and still have chosen control. He could be frightened for her and still have helped create the danger.
That evening, the prosecutor's office confirmed that investigators had located the records service Adrian had used. A warrant had been issued for its files. The team was moving quickly, but the threat remained real.
Before bed, Vivian placed her hand on her stomach and felt the baby shift.
"You're not a ghost," she whispered. "Neither am I."
Before the meeting ended, Miriam asked Matteo to identify every person who had known about the transfers. He named Adrian, two accountants, and a consultant whose company had been paid for security reviews. When asked whether he had informed Vivian, he admitted he had not. He said he wanted to protect her from the details, but even as he spoke, he seemed to hear how hollow the explanation sounded.
"Did you ever consider that she might have been safer knowing the truth?" Miriam asked.
Matteo stared at the table. "I thought knowledge would put her in danger."
"Keeping her ignorant put her in danger too."
He did not argue. Vivian watched him absorb the sentence, and for a moment she saw the cost of the truth reach him. But feeling the cost was not the same as paying it. He still had a company, attorneys, and a network of people who would try to protect him. Vivian had a bag, a new phone, and a baby she was trying to bring safely into the world.
She left the room knowing that Matteo's cooperation might help the investigation. It would not decide whether she trusted him again. That decision belonged to a future in which she could think without fear, and she was not there yet.
Before the meeting concluded, Matteo's attorney asked whether Vivian would consider a private settlement to avoid public embarrassment. Vivian refused through Miriam. She would not trade the right to tell the truth for promises that could be withdrawn later. If the records showed wrongdoing, the appropriate authorities needed to see them. If Matteo had information, he could provide it without making Vivian responsible for his reputation.
May you like
Before he left, Matteo asked whether Vivian wanted him to arrange a private doctor or a security team. She declined both. "If you want to help, cooperate with the investigation and stop sending people to find me." He nodded, and this time he did not argue that he knew better. It was a small response, but it was the first time he had heard a boundary without trying to negotiate it away.
For the first time, the words felt less like a wish than a promise.
