Chapter 11 - Celeste’s Old Name
The man in the photograph was Graham Pike, but the date on the back was six years earlier, long before Celeste met Adrian. Marisol found that Celeste had used a different last name at the time: Celeste Ward.
Under that name, she had worked as an assistant at a private estate-management company. The company had been investigated after an elderly client’s assets were transferred to a new trust manager shortly before the client was declared incapable of making decisions.
No criminal charges had been filed. The client had later died, and the family had settled a civil dispute quietly.
“That doesn’t prove Celeste did anything illegal,” Marisol warned. “But it gives investigators a reason to look at the pattern.”
Adrian paced the study. “She told me her family lost everything when she was young. She said she’d spent her life trying to make sure nobody could take security away from her again.”
Naomi softened. “That’s why people like her get so far. They make you feel cruel for asking questions.”
Evelyn joined them, carrying a folder of old correspondence. She had found letters from her late husband warning her that Pike had once tried to arrange a financial review without her permission. Her husband had refused and changed the trust’s oversight terms afterward.
“I understand there has been confusion,” she said. “I’m willing to put this behind us if Evelyn signs a short statement confirming she was tired and mistaken.”
Evelyn stared at her. “You had me taken to a place with no proper doctor.”
Celeste’s face hardened. “Careful, Evelyn. You may not remember everything you say.”
Adrian stepped between them. “The wedding is off.”
“You can cancel a wedding, Adrian. You cannot cancel the contract you already signed.”
Adrian looked at the signature line.
May you like
It was his name.
And he had never seen the document before.
