Chapter 55 The Proof
Jessie opened the door to find Harper on her doorstep, shaking and pale.
"He had a clause," Harper said without preamble. "About taking the baby. It was in an early draft of the contract."
Jessie pulled her inside immediately. "Start from the beginning."
Harper showed her the text and the forged document. Explained Sebastian's claim that he'd never seen that version. His lawyer's confirmation that it existed but was removed.
"So the clause was real," Jessie said carefully, "but Sebastian says he didn't approve it?"
"That's what he claims. But Jessie, how do I know he's telling the truth? What if he saw it and removed it only after deciding it was too obvious? What if this whole relationship has been him maneuvering to get custody of any potential children?"
"Why would he want that? Sebastian doesn't even know if he wants kids."
"Control. Power. Continuing the Colton legacy." Harper paced Jessie's living room. "Maybe the baby was always the endgame. Marry me, get me pregnant, take the child and the Adriatic in one move."
"Harper, you're spiraling. That's a conspiracy theory, not a logical conclusion."
"Is it? Look at the evidence. The contract marriage. The five million dollar payment. The clause about custody. The way he freaked out when I got pregnant." Harper felt hysteria rising. "What if Vanessa was right about everything?"
Jessie grabbed her shoulders. "Stop. Breathe. You're letting fear control you."
"I'm letting evidence control me. There's a difference."
"Evidence that someone sent you. Someone who wants to destroy your relationship." Jessie guided her to the couch. "Harper, who benefits from you not trusting Sebastian?"
Harper thought about it. "Vanessa. Patricia. Anyone who wants revenge on the Colton family."
"Exactly. This document appears now, right when you and Sebastian are working through trust issues, that's not a coincidence. It's strategy."
Harper wanted to believe that. But the document looked so real. The clause is so calculated.
"I need to verify it independently," Harper said. "Talk to Sebastian's lawyer myself. See the actual files. Know for certain whether he's lying."
"Okay. That's reasonable. Call the lawyer."
Harper did. Got voicemail. Left a message requesting an emergency meeting.
While she waited, Jessie made tea and neither of them drank.
"What if he's telling the truth?" Jessie asked. "What if you blow up your marriage over a forged document?"
"Then I'll apologize and work to rebuild trust. But Jessie, what if he's lying? What if I stay and find out too late that he's been manipulating me all along?"
"Then you leave and we figure out custody arrangements. But Harper, you need actual proof before you make that decision. Not just fear and suspicion."
Harper's phone rang. The lawyer calling back.
"Mrs. Colton, I got your message. I'm sending you the complete file history right now. Every version of the contract, with timestamps and revision notes. You'll see that the custody clause was in draft one only and removed before Sebastian ever reviewed it."
Harper opened her email. Downloaded the files. Went through them with Jessie looking over her shoulder.
The lawyer was right. Draft one, dated three weeks before their wedding, contained the custody clause. Draft two, dated two weeks before, had it removed with a note: "Per client request, remove all custody provisions. Client wants standard prenup protections only."
Draft three, the one they'd signed, had no mention of children at all.
"He's telling the truth," Jessie said. "Sebastian removed it before you ever saw the contract."
Harper stared at the evidence. Sebastian hadn't lied. He'd never seen or approved the problematic clause.
Someone had sent her that early draft specifically to make her doubt him.
And it worked.
"I accused him of planning to steal our baby," Harper whispered. "I left him thinking I believed he was manipulating me all along."
"So call him. Tell him you verified his story."
Harper reached for her phone just as another text came through.
"Nice try with the lawyer. But did you ask about the offshore accounts? The ones Sebastian set up in the Cayman Islands? The ones with money transfers matching exactly the amount he paid you? He's been hiding assets, Harper. Planning his exit from the beginning. Check account number 847392-CH. See for yourself."
Harper showed Jessie the text.
"Don't," Jessie said immediately. "Don't engage with whoever's sending these. It's obviously someone trying to manipulate you."
"But what if it's real? What if there are accounts?"
"Then Sebastian will have an explanation. A legitimate one. Harper, you can't chase every accusation. You'll drive yourself insane."
But Harper was already looking up how to search Cayman Island banking records. Of course, she couldn't access them without account holder permission. The whole thing was designed to create doubt without providing actual proof.
She called Sebastian instead.
"Harper, thank God. Did you talk to the lawyer?"
"Yes. I verified your story about the clause. I'm sorry I doubted you." Harper took a breath. "But I have a question. Do you have any offshore accounts? Specifically in the Cayman Islands?"
Silence on the other end. Long enough that Harper's stomach dropped.
"Sebastian? Do you have offshore accounts?"
"Yes," he said finally. "But not for the reasons you're thinking. Let me explain in person. Where are you?"
"At Jessie's. And no, you can explain over the phone. Why do you have secret accounts in the Cayman Islands?"
"They're not secret. They're legitimate tax structures for international business holdings. My accountant set them up years ago for Colton Industries. They're completely legal and disclosed to the IRS."
"Someone just sent me an account number. They said you've been transferring money there. Planning an exit."
"What's the account number?"
Harper read it off. Heard Sebastian typing.
"That account was closed three years ago. Before I even met you. Whoever sent you that information is either working from old data or deliberately misleading you." Sebastian's voice was strained. "Harper, please. Come home. Let me show you all the financial records. Every account, every transfer, everything. I have nothing to hide."
"How do I know that? How do I know you're not just good at covering your tracks?"
"Because I'm offering complete transparency. My accountant. My lawyer. My financial advisor. Talk to all of them. Verify everything independently. I'll sign whatever release you need."
Harper felt exhaustion wash over her. "I don't know if I have the energy to verify everything. To question every statement you make. To live in constant doubt."
"Then don't. Choose to trust me. Just this once. Choose to believe I'm telling the truth until you have actual evidence otherwise."
"That's not how trust works."
"Isn't it? Harper, you're requiring me to prove a negative. To prove I'm not planning something I've never planned. That's impossible. At some point, you have to decide whether to believe me or not."
Harper closed her eyes. He was right. She could chase every accusation forever and never find peace. Someone was clearly targeting them, sending perfectly timed messages designed to destroy their relationship.
The question was whether she'd let them succeed.
"I need to see the records," Harper said. "All of them. Tomorrow. At your accountant's office."
"Done. I'll set it up first thing in the morning." Sebastian paused. "But Harper, after you verify everything, after you see proof I'm not hiding assets or planning to steal our baby or any of the other things you're afraid of, we need to talk about your trust issues. Really talk. Because I can't live under constant suspicion. It's destroying both of us."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry. Be willing to work on it. With me. Together."
After hanging up, Harper sat with Jessie in heavy silence.
"He's right," Jessie said gently. "At some point, you have to choose to trust him or leave. This middle ground is torture for both of you."
"I know. But Jessie, what if I'm wrong? What if I trust him and he betrays me?"
"Then you survive it. The same way you survived David. The same way you survived losing your parents and your aunt. You survive because you're stronger than you think."
Harper put her hand on her stomach. Not just herself anymore. A baby dependent on her making the right choice.
"Tomorrow," Harper said. "Tomorrow I will verify everything. And then I decide whether to trust him or walk away."
"And tonight?"
"Tonight I will stay here and try not to think about the fact that I'm pregnant, alone, and questioning everything I thought I knew about the man I married."
Jessie hugged her tight. "You're not alone. Whatever you decide, I'm here."
Harper clung to her friend and tried to believe that would be enough.
But as another text came through from the unknown number, she felt certainty slip further away.
"Sleep well, Harper. Tomorrow you'll learn the truth about Sebastian. All of it. And you'll realize you never really knew him at all."
Harper turned off her phone.
Tomorrow, she'd find out who was right.
Sebastian or Vanessa.
Trust or doubt.
Love or self-preservation.
And whatever she discovered would change everything.