Before I could respond—
“Enough!”
Chloe’s voice cut through everything.
I turned.
She was crying.
“He wasn’t supposed to find out,” she told my father. “But now… I’ll tell him.”
The room went quiet.
I looked between them. “Can someone just explain what’s going on?”
She nodded, steadying herself.
“The week I disappeared,” she began, “two men came looking for you. Debt collectors. They knew your name.”
“That’s impossible,” I said. “I don’t owe anyone anything.”
“They left documents,” she continued. “Contracts. Legal filings. Your name was on all of them.”
I shook my head. “I’ve never owned a business.”
Her eyes shifted—to my father.
Mine followed.
He couldn’t meet my gaze.
Finally, he spoke. “Years ago… I put a company under your name. It was supposed to be temporary.”
“You put debt in my name,” I snapped.
Chloe stepped forward. “The company failed worse than he admitted. The debts were buried, restructured… hidden. But something resurfaced. Someone started digging.”
I stared at her. “So your solution was marrying him?”
Pain flickered across her face. “I needed access. Influence. A way to fix it fast without dragging you into it. Marriage was the cleanest legal route.”
