The CEO's Revenge Bride

Chapter four

ARIANNA'S POV

I barely slept.

Every time I closed my eyes, the same images returned.

Albert standing beside Lucy.

The way he looked at her.

The kiss outside the house.

The divorce papers sitting on the dining table.

And the documents concerning my inheritance.

I turn onto my side and stare at the curtains covering the hotel window.

Morning light has already begun to enter the room.

For a moment, I forget where I am.

Then everything comes back.

I sit up slowly.

The room is quiet except for the faint sounds outside cars, people, and a door closing somewhere along the hallway.

It feels strange waking up in a hotel instead of my own bedroom.

Yesterday morning, I had been worried about whether Albert would like the dinner I prepared for our anniversary.

Now I don't even know if I still have a marriage.

I reach for my phone.

There are three missed calls from Albert, two messages from an unknown number, and one message from my father.

My heart tightens when I see his name.

Dad.

I stare at the message for several seconds before opening it.

Are you okay? You didn't answer my call last night.

I swallow.

My father knows me too well. If I don't answer him, he will worry.

I type a response.

I'm fine, Dad. I just needed some time alone.

I stare at the words.

They look like a lie.

Before I can send them, another message appears.

Call me when you wake up.

I close my eyes.

I don't want to talk to him.

Not because I don't trust him. He's probably the only person I still trust.

But I don't know how to explain what happened without breaking down.

I place the phone beside me.

Then I remember the bank notification from last night.

The restriction.

My stomach tightens.

I pick up my phone again and open the banking application.

The message is still there.

ACCOUNT RESTRICTION ACTIVE.

This time, I don't try to convince myself that it's nothing.

Something is wrong.

I sit up properly and check my accounts.

My personal account is still accessible. The money is still there.

But one of the accounts connected to the family assets has been restricted.

I scroll through the information carefully.

I don't understand everything I'm seeing, but I recognize one thing.

My inheritance.

My shares.

I sit completely still.

Lucy also owns shares in the company.

My father never gave either of us control of the entire business. He had always made that clear. The company belonged to him, and he had never intended to hand everything over to his daughters while he was alive.

What he gave us were our individual shares and properties.

They were ours.

And now Albert wanted me to transfer mine.

Why?

I suddenly remember his words.

"You'll transfer the assets."

My hands tighten around the phone.

I don't understand why he would ask me to do something like that.

Unless he knew something I didn't.

I get out of bed.

My legs feel weak, but I force myself toward the small desk near the window.

I open my email.

I need information.

Not guesses.

Not emotions.

Facts.

I search through my emails until I find several messages from Albert's office.

Most are ordinary business correspondence.

Then one from several weeks ago catches my attention.

It concerns a meeting with a legal representative.

I open it.

My eyes move across the screen.

The email is brief, but one sentence makes my heart stop.

"Please ensure Mrs. Blackwood is available to review and execute the necessary documents."

I read it again.

Execute the documents.

What documents?

I scroll further.

There is no attachment.

I lean back in the chair.

My mind starts racing.

How long have they been planning this?

I think about all the papers Albert had brought home over the past year.

He would place them in front of me and tell me where to sign.

Sometimes I barely looked at them.

Sometimes I read them.

But I never imagined he would use my trust against me.

I press my fingers against my forehead.

"Think, Arianna."

I whisper the words to myself.

I need someone who understands these documents.

Someone independent.

Not one of Albert's lawyers.

I open my contacts.

My finger stops over a name.

Daniel Moore.

My family's attorney.

He has handled some of my father's legal affairs for years. My father trusts him.

If anyone can tell me what's happening, it's him.

I hesitate before calling.

What if he already knows?

What if Albert has contacted him?

I don't know.

But I can't sit in this hotel room and keep guessing.

I press the call button.

The phone rings.

Once.

Twice.

Then someone answers.

"Mrs. Blackwood?"

"Mr. Moore."

"Are you all right?"

I pause.

"I'm not sure."

There is silence on the other end.

"What happened?"

I look toward the window.

"I need to ask you something."

"Of course."

"Did you receive any documents from Albert concerning my inheritance?"

His silence lasts only a few seconds.

But I notice it.

"Mr. Moore?"

"Yes. I received some documents."

My heart drops.

"What kind of documents?"

"I would rather discuss that in person."

"Why?"

Another pause.

"Because I don't think we should discuss something this sensitive over the phone."

I sit straighter.

"Does my father know about them?"

"No."

The answer comes quickly.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

I release a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"Can you meet me today?"

"Of course. Where are you?"

I hesitate.

"I'll send you the address."

"All right."

The call ends.

I stare at the phone.

For the first time since last night, I feel like I have something to hold on to.

Not hope.

Not yet.

Just information.

And right now, that's enough.

I open my messages again.

Albert has sent another one.

Please come home. We need to finish this properly.

I stare at it.

Finish this properly.

Yesterday, I would have answered immediately.

Today, I don't.

I delete the notification without opening the conversation.

Then I look at myself in the mirror across the room.

My face looks tired.

My eyes are swollen from crying.

But beneath all of that, there is something else.

Confusion.

Fear.

And a small part of me that refuses to believe everything is already over.

I don't know what Albert has planned.

I don't know what Lucy knows.

And I don't know why they suddenly want my inheritance.

But I'm going to find out.

I take a quick bath, put on my coat, and reach for my bag.

Before leaving the room, I look back at the bed.

For a moment, I remember last night.

How helpless I felt.

How I sat there wondering who I could trust.

I don't want to feel like that again.

I lock the door behind me and walk toward the ele

vator.

As the doors close, my phone vibrates.

I look down.

A message from Daniel Moore.

I'm on my way. We need to talk before you make any decisions.

I read it twice.

Then I put the phone away.

Whatever Albert and Lucy have been planning, I know one thing now.

I am not signing anything.

Not until I know exactly what they're trying to take from me.