Chapter 20 - THE SECOND ENVELOPEChloe had taken a letter from David’s desk.
Not the recording.
A handwritten letter addressed:
For Sarah — after the baby arrives.
She found it while searching his office after death.
She opened it.
Read it.
Then kept it.
Why?
Because it mentioned donor conception.
David had written:
If our child ever doubts whether I wanted them, tell them I was already arguing about stroller wheels before they had functioning toes.
It also said:
Genes explain origin. They do not measure commitment.
Chloe knew.
Before the funeral.
She knew David had knowingly used donor sperm.
She still allowed Eleanor to accuse me publicly of cheating.
That changed everything emotionally.
Legally, the letter was not the decisive document.
The clinic consent and estate instruments were stronger.
But Chloe’s credibility collapsed.
“Why?”
I asked.
She cried.
“I thought the trust shouldn’t control the company.”
There.
Not confusion.
Money.
Control.
If David’s child qualified, David’s 42 percent would eventually benefit the child under independent trusteeship.
If not, portions could pass under alternative provisions potentially increasing Chloe’s and other family interests.
“How much?”
I asked.
“What?”
“How much was humiliating me worth?”
May you like
She had no answer.
There usually isn’t a satisfying number.
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