Chapter 4 - Uncle George
My uncle George had kissed my cheek before the ceremony.
Called me his favorite niece.
Told Anton to take care of me.
Then apparently discussed my “clean window” with Carmela.
I called him.
He answered too quickly.
“Clara, are you okay?”
“How did you know something happened?”
Silence.
Then:
“Carmela texted me.”
“When?”
“Before dinner.”
“What did she say?”
George hesitated.
“That you might feel sick.”
My hand tightened around the phone.
“Before I felt sick?”
Anton stared at me.
George tried to recover.
“She said you were exhausted.”
I said:
“Why would she know?”
No answer.
Then I asked:
“Did you know about the incapacity form?”
“No.”
Too fast.
“Did you know she planned to use my voting shares?”
“No.”
Then he made the mistake.
“She said it would only be for forty-eight hours.”
The room went silent.
George realized what he had said.
“Clara—”
I hung up.
My father, Daniel Reyes, was standing by the window.
His face looked twenty years older.
“That’s my brother.”
I nodded.
He had opposed the Mercer acquisition from the beginning.
Not because he hated Anton’s family.
Because the sale included mass layoffs.
Then Harris obtained George and Carmela’s messages.
Months of them.
Most were business.
Then one:
Marriage activates Clara’s vote. We only need her unavailable through Monday.
Another:
Anton must never know.
Anton read it twice.
His face broke.
Then the final message appeared.
If Clara resists, use Plan B.
No details.
Just two words.
Plan B.
My father whispered:
May you like
“I think I know what that means.”
Dad did not defend George. That surprised me. He only said, “If my brother did this, we follow the evidence all the way through.” There was grief in his voice, but no excuse. I realized I might be watching two families learn the same lesson at the same time.
