CHAPTER 2 EPISODE 2
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EPISODE 2: THE SECRET BEHIND THE SIGNATURE
Celine stared at the document in her trembling hands.
The signature at the bottom belonged to George Williams.
Her husband.
The man who had kissed her like she was the only woman in his world. The man whose eyes softened whenever he looked at her. The man who had promised that nothing would ever come between them.
Yet his signature was attached to an agreement that could destroy everything she believed about their marriage.
"Tell me this isn't real," she whispered.
Behind her, the bedroom door opened.
"Celine?"
She quickly folded the document, but George had already noticed the fear on her face.
"What happened?"
"Nothing."
He studied her. "You've been saying that all evening, but your face tells a different story."
"Perhaps you don't know my face as well as you think you do."
Something changed in his expression.
George stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Did someone say something to you?"
Celine almost laughed.
How could she explain that the man standing before her might be connected to the destruction of her family?
How could she tell him that she had spent years trying to understand why her father lost everything, only to discover a document bearing her husband's name?
"George, have you ever kept a secret from someone you love?"
He paused.
"Everyone has secrets, Celine."
"Even from their wives?"
His jaw tightened.
"Especially when the truth could hurt them."
The answer struck her harder than she expected.
She slipped the document behind her back.
George noticed.
"What are you hiding?"
"Nothing you need to worry about."
"Celine."
"Don't say my name like that!" she snapped.
Silence filled the room.
She had never raised her voice at him before.
For a moment, George looked genuinely surprised. Then he reached for her hand, but she stepped away.
"Don't touch me."
His eyes darkened.
"Have I done something to you?"
She wanted to scream that he had done everything. She wanted to demand answers about the agreement and the mysterious letter.
Instead, she swallowed her fear.
"I need some time alone."
George stared at her for several seconds before nodding.
"Fine. But we are not finished talking."
He walked out, closing the door behind him.
The moment she heard his footsteps disappear, Celine sank onto the edge of the bed.
She unfolded the document again.
There were several pages, but one paragraph caught her attention.
The Williams Group shall bear no further responsibility for the financial claims arising from the Owangile property dispute, provided that all affected parties agree to the terms outlined below.
Celine's breath caught.
Owangile.
Her father's name was connected to that dispute.
She remembered the night everything changed. Her father had returned home looking exhausted, carrying a brown envelope he refused to let anyone touch.
Three weeks later, their family began losing everything.
Her father had called it a business misunderstanding.
Her mother had called it betrayal.
And Celine had spent years wondering who had betrayed them.
Now, she was beginning to fear she had married into the very family responsible.
Her phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
Unknown: If you want to know what your husband did to your family, meet me tomorrow at 10 a.m. Come alone.
Celine stared at the message.
Before she could reply, another message arrived.
Unknown: Ask George about the night your father begged the Williams family for mercy.
Her fingers went cold.
Her father had never told her about that night.
Whoever was messaging her knew something she didn't.
And they wanted her to discover it.
The following morning, George woke to an empty side of the bed.
Celine was already downstairs, sitting at the breakfast table with a cup of untouched tea.
He adjusted his shirt cuffs as he approached her.
"You didn't sleep well."
It wasn't a question.
"Neither did you," she replied.
George pulled out the chair opposite her.
"I've been thinking about last night."
"So have I."
"Then let's stop pretending everything is fine."
Celine lifted her eyes.
For one brief moment, she considered telling him everything. She wanted him to deny the accusations before suspicion could poison the little trust she had left.
But the words refused to come.
Instead, she asked, "Did you know my father?"
George went completely still.
It lasted barely a second, but Celine saw it.
The hesitation.
The recognition.
The fear he quickly buried beneath his usual expression.
"Why are you asking me that?"
"Just answer the question."
"I knew of him."
"Knew of him, or knew him?"
George placed his cup on the table.
"Your father had business dealings with several companies in Seoul. Williams Group was one of them."
"And what happened between them?"
"That was years ago."
"That doesn't answer my question."
His expression hardened.
"Celine, some things are more complicated than they appear."
She pushed her chair back.
"That's convenient. Every time I ask you something important, you tell me it's complicated."
He stood too.
"Because you don't understand what you're asking!"
The sudden sharpness in his voice startled her.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then George closed his eyes and exhaled slowly.
"I'm sorry."
Celine looked away.
"Perhaps you should be sorry for something else."
"What does that mean?"
"Nothing."
She picked up her bag.
"Where are you going?" he asked.
"Out."
"With whom?"
She turned toward him, anger replacing the hurt in her eyes.
"Do I need your permission to leave the house?"
"No. But I deserve to know why my wife is suddenly treating me like an enemy."
Celine almost told him about the messages.
Almost.
Instead, she walked toward the door.
George caught up with her before she reached it.
"Celine, look at me."
She reluctantly turned.
His voice softened.
"Whatever you've heard about me, give me a chance to explain before you decide who I am."
For one dangerous second, she remembered the warmth of his arms around her the night before. She remembered his lips against hers and the way he had whispered that he wanted their marriage to be real.
She still wanted to believe him.
That was the problem.
She wanted to believe him so badly that she was afraid of what the truth might do to her.
"I hope you haven't given me a reason to regret trusting you," she whispered.
Then she left.
George stood motionless as the front door closed.
His phone rang almost immediately.
"Sir," Daniel Park said from the other end, "we have a problem."
George's expression turned cold.
"What happened?"
"Someone accessed the old Owangile case files last night."
George tightened his grip on the phone.
"Who?"
"We're still investigating. But there's something else you should know."
"Speak."
"The sealed documents concerning Celine's father have disappeared."
For several seconds, George said nothing.
Then he asked, "Does Celine know?"
"We can't be certain."
George looked toward the door through which his wife had disappeared.
A terrible suspicion settled in his chest.
"Find out who took those files," he ordered. "And Daniel?"
"Yes, sir?"
"If my father learns that Celine is investigating the past, he'll do everything in his power to stop her."
Daniel hesitated.
"Sir, what exactly happened between your family and hers?"
George's eyes darkened.
"Something I should have told her before I married her."
He ended the call.
For the first time in years, George Williams felt afraid.
Not of losing his company.
Not of disappointing his father.
But of losing the woman he had finally allowed himself to love.
At exactly ten o'clock, Celine arrived at the cafÃĐ mentioned in the message.
She chose a table near the window, keeping her bag on her lap.
She had told nobody where she was going.
A waiter approached, but she ordered only water.
At 10:07, a woman wearing a dark coat entered the cafÃĐ.
She scanned the room before walking directly toward Celine.
"You came," the woman said.
"Who are you?"
The stranger sat down.
"Someone who knew your father."
Celine leaned forward.
"Did you send me those messages?"
The woman nodded.
"Then tell me the truth. What happened between my father and the Williams family?"
The woman glanced toward the entrance before answering.
"Your father discovered something he was never supposed to see. Something powerful people were willing to destroy him to protect."
"What did he discover?"
"The truth about the Williams Group's biggest secret."
Celine's heart hammered.
"Was George involved?"
The woman studied her face.
"That depends on what you mean by involved."
"Stop speaking in riddles!"
Several people turned toward them.
The woman lowered her voice.
"Your father didn't lose everything because he was careless with money, Celine. He lost everything because someone wanted him silent."
Celine felt the room tilt around her.
"Who?"
Before the woman could answer, her phone rang.
She glanced at the screen and immediately stood.
"We have to leave."
"What? You haven't told me anything!"
"They know I'm here."
"Who knows?"
The woman's eyes widened as she looked through the cafÃĐ window.
A black car had stopped across the street.
Two men stepped out.
The woman grabbed Celine's wrist.
"Listen to me carefully. Do not trust anyone in that house. Not George. Not his father. Not evenâ"
A loud crash interrupted her.
One of the men had entered the cafÃĐ.
The woman released Celine's wrist and pushed a small envelope into her hand.
"Take this. Whatever happens, don't let them get it."
Then she hurried toward the back exit.
Celine stood frozen, clutching the envelope.
The man in the dark suit approached her table.
"Mrs. Williams?"
She forced herself to remain calm.
"Yes?"
"Mr. Williams would like you to come home."
"Which Mr. Williams?"
The man's expression changed.
Before he could answer, Celine's phone rang.
George.
She answered immediately.
"George, how did you know where I was?"
His voice was urgent.
"Celine, listen to me. Leave that cafÃĐ immediately."
"Why?"
"Because my father knows you've been asking questions."
Her blood ran cold.
"How does he know?"
George was silent for a moment.
Then he said something that made her grip the phone tighter.
"Because the woman you're meeting is the same woman who helped destroy your family."
Celine stared at the stranger's abandoned chair.
The envelope trembled in her hand.
"George," she whispered, "what aren't you telling me?"
His reply came quietly.
"The truth about your father is worse than you think."
The call disconnected.
Celine looked down at the envelope.
Written across the front in familiar handwriting were five words:
YOUR FATHER WAS NEVER THE CULPRIT.
Her father's handwriting.
And beneath the message was a date.
The date of the night he lost everything.
Celine slowly raised her eyes toward the cafÃĐ door.
The man in the dark suit was still watching her.
She had come looking for answers.
But now she understood one terrifying thing.
Someone had known she would come.
And someone had made sure she would never leave with the truth easily.
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