Chapter 5 - The Secret Felicity Thought Was Buried
The police placed Josephine and the twins under temporary protection that night.
I refused to leave until I knew they were safe.
Josephine didn't ask me to stay.
But she didn't ask me to go either.
That was enough.
Noah slept against her shoulder.
Elias rested in a portable crib provided by the county.
I sat several feet away.
For a long time, neither of us spoke.
Then Josephine said, “You hold him like you're afraid he'll break.”
I looked down at Noah.
“I've missed almost his entire first year.”
“You can't fix that tonight.”
“I know.”
Her eyes met mine.
For once, I didn't apologize.
I'd apologized so many times that the words were beginning to sound selfish.
Sorry did not change diapers at three in the morning.
Sorry didn't pay hospital bills.
Sorry didn't hold Josephine's hand while she gave birth.
Sorry didn't give my sons their first birthday months back.
So instead, I said, “Tell me what they like.”
She blinked.
“What?”
“The boys.”
I smiled slightly.
“What makes them laugh?”
Something softened in her face.
“Elias likes when you sneeze.”
“When I sneeze?”
“When anyone sneezes.”
I looked toward the crib.
“Useful information.”
“Noah likes ceiling fans.”
I laughed quietly.
“Seriously?”
“He could stare at one for an hour.”
For five minutes, we talked like parents.
Not ex-spouses.
Not enemies.
Parents.
It was the most precious conversation I'd had in years.
The next morning, Winston arrived.
He had found the financial records Josephine mentioned.
She had stored encrypted copies in an old cloud account.
The documents showed the Danforth charitable foundation had been used to move money through fake humanitarian projects.
Felicity and Cameron siphoned millions.
Josephine discovered irregularities while working in bookkeeping.
“She confronted Felicity?” I asked.
Josephine nodded.
“Stupidly.”
“What happened?”
“She smiled.”
I frowned.
“Smiled?”
“She asked how much I wanted.”
“You refused.”
“Of course.”
“And then?”
“She told me everyone had a price.”
Josephine looked at me.
“I told her I didn't.”
Months later, Josephine and I started dating.
When Felicity discovered who I was—and what my company was worth—everything changed.
“She couldn't risk you marrying me,” Josephine said.
“Because you knew about the theft.”
“And because your company gave her family another financial target.”
It finally made sense.
The affair.
The stolen money.
The necklace.
Felicity had created a story I would find impossible to ignore.
And I had done exactly what she expected.
I divorced Josephine.
Then Felicity stepped into the empty space.
The police arrested Cameron first.
He was detained while attempting to board a private flight.
Felicity disappeared.
Her attorneys claimed they hadn't spoken to her.
No one believed them.
Three days passed.
During those three days, I visited Josephine and the twins every morning.
I learned their routines.
Elias hated peas.
Noah loved bananas.
Both boys calmed down when Josephine sang.
The first time Elias reached for me voluntarily, I almost cried again.
Josephine noticed.
“You're emotional lately.”
“I have eleven months to catch up on.”
She almost smiled.
Almost.
One afternoon, I brought lunch.
Josephine sat across from me at the small kitchen table in the protected residence.
“Can I ask you something?” I said.
“You can ask.”
“Why didn't you hate me?”
She looked down.
“Who says I didn't?”
“I saw you on the road.”
“And?”
“You looked hurt. Not angry.”
She was quiet for a long time.
“Anger takes energy.”
I waited.
“I needed every bit of mine for them.”
She nodded toward the twins.
That answer told me more about the year I'd missed than any report ever could.
“How bad was it?”
She stared out the window.
“Some days?”
“Yes.”
“I ate crackers so they could have formula.”
My throat tightened.
“Why didn't you use the settlement money?”
She laughed bitterly.
“What settlement money?”
I froze.
“The divorce settlement.”
“I never received it.”
“What?”
My lawyer had transferred nearly $400,000 according to the final agreement.
Winston checked.
The money had gone into an account.
But not Josephine's.
Another shell company.
Felicity had taken that too.
I stood so quickly the chair scraped the floor.
Josephine flinched.
“Sorry.”
I sat again.
“She stole your settlement.”
Josephine's face became still.
“That explains a lot.”
I covered my mouth.
While she collected cans…
Money meant for her had been stolen.
That evening, I transferred funds into a legally protected trust for the twins and arranged immediate support through Josephine's attorney.
I did not try to control it.
I didn't attach conditions.
I didn't ask her to move into my house.
I simply gave back what should have been hers.
Two days later, Winston called.
“We found Felicity.”
“Where?”
“Not exactly found.”
“What does that mean?”
“She contacted me.”
I frowned.
“Why would she contact you?”
“She wants a deal.”
“What kind?”
“She'll surrender evidence against Cameron if you agree not to testify against her.”
I laughed.
“No.”
“That's what I told her.”
“Anything else?”
“She asked to meet you.”
“No.”
“Good.”
Then Winston hesitated.
“What?”
“She said she has something belonging to Josephine.”
My stomach tightened.
“What?”
“She wouldn't say.”
We told police.
They arranged communication.
Felicity eventually agreed to meet at a law office under controlled conditions.
I went because detectives believed she might reveal evidence.
Josephine stayed protected with the twins.
Felicity entered wearing a gray coat and sunglasses.
For the first time since I'd known her, she looked tired.
She sat across from me.
“So,” she said. “You found your family.”
I said nothing.
“Are you happy?”
“No thanks to you.”
She smiled faintly.
“You think Josephine is going to forgive you?”
“This isn't about forgiveness.”
“Everything is about forgiveness with you.”
She leaned forward.
“You can't live with being the villain, Bennett.”
The words hit me.
But I didn't react.
“You need Josephine to tell you you're still a good man.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
I stared at her.
“You're right about one thing.”
Her eyebrows rose.
“I was the villain in Josephine's story.”
Felicity smiled.
“Finally.”
“But that doesn't make you innocent.”
Her expression hardened.
I continued.
“You manipulated me. But I chose to believe you.”
Silence.
“That's mine to carry.”
For the first time, Felicity seemed unable to use my guilt against me.
She reached into her bag.
Detectives tensed behind the glass.
She placed an envelope on the table.
“What is that?”
“A letter.”
“From who?”
“Josephine.”
I stared.
“She wrote it while she was pregnant.”
My hands trembled.
“How did you get it?”
“I intercepted it.”
Of course.
I opened the envelope.
The letter was dated eleven days before the twins were born.
Bennett,
I don't know whether you'll ever read this.
I don't know whether you hate me enough to throw it away.
But I'm having two boys.
They're yours.
I know you don't believe me about anything else, so maybe you won't believe this either.
But one day they may ask me who their father is, and I refuse to teach them to hate you.
I will tell them you were once the kindest man I knew.
I hope someday you become him again.
Josephine.
I couldn't read further.
My vision blurred.
Felicity watched me.
“Touching.”
I looked up.
“Why did you keep it?”
She shrugged.
“Trophy.”
Something changed inside me.
Not rage.
Clarity.
Felicity had taken money.
Years.
Trust.
Memories.
But she had failed at one thing.
She had not turned Josephine into someone cruel.
And she had not prevented me from eventually seeing what I'd become.
I stood.
Felicity frowned.
“We aren't finished.”
“Yes, we are.”
As I walked toward the door, she spoke.
“You think this ends with me in prison and you going home to play family?”
I stopped.
She smiled.
“There’s one more thing Josephine hasn't told you.”
I turned.
“What?”
“Ask her why she never challenged the divorce.”
I stared.
Felicity's smile returned.
“She wasn't just protecting the babies from me.”
“What are you talking about?”
“She was protecting you.”
May you like
The room went silent.
And once again, Felicity had managed to leave me with a question I was terrified to ask.
