Chapter 5 - Twenty-Five PercentNathan’s late father, William, had structured the company carefully.
Nathan held forty percent.
Margaret held thirty-five.
A family trust held the rest.
Nathan’s first biological child would receive twenty-five percent through that trust when paternity was confirmed and the birth registered.
That transfer had happened automatically three days after Sophie was born.
Margaret’s influence collapsed overnight.
Nathan called the family attorney, Rachel Kim.
She came to the house before midnight.
Rachel read the trust documents.
Then the false paternity report.
Then the guardianship petition.
Her expression changed.
“If Sophie is declared not biologically yours, her shares revert to the family trust.”
“Who controls the family trust?”
Rachel looked at him.
“Your mother and Grant Hale jointly.”
Claire laughed once.
No humor.
“There it is.”
Nathan paced.
“If they prove Sophie isn’t mine, they get control back.”
“Not automatically,” Rachel said. “But they create a path.”
“And guardianship?”
“If they also paint Claire as unstable and you as absent, Margaret could try to position herself as Sophie’s temporary guardian during litigation.”
Nathan stopped.
“So she gets the baby and the shares.”
Rachel did not answer quickly.
That was answer enough.
Then she asked Claire:
“What exactly did Margaret say before Nathan came in?”
Claire went still.
“She said I ruined everything.”
“What else?”
Claire looked at Nathan.
“She said, ‘You should have signed when I gave you the chance.’”
“Signed what?”
Claire shook her head.
“I don’t know.”
Rachel opened the court packet.
One page was missing.
The page numbers jumped from six to eight.
Nathan’s phone buzzed again.
Unknown number.
A photo appeared.
Margaret’s kitchen table.
On it sat the missing page.
A POSTNUPTIAL WAIVER OF MATERNAL CLAIMS TO SOPHIE’S TRUST INTEREST.
Below the photo:
Tell Claire to sign, and this can still end quietly.
Nathan stared at the message.
May you like
Then another arrived.
You have until morning.
Related Stories
