Chapter 18 - The Missing Brother
Nathan's disappearance became headline material before the court filings were fully understood.
Reporters speculated about foreign bank accounts and private flights.
Some articles called him a mastermind.
Others described him as an unlucky businessman caught in a family dispute.
I had learned not to trust either kind of certainty without evidence.
Investigators followed transactions, travel records, and communications through lawful channels.
They asked us not to publicize information that could compromise the search.
For three days, the phones in my office barely stopped ringing.
One client wanted to pause a contract.
Another offered support.
An employee asked whether there would still be jobs next month.
I gathered our department heads and explained what I could.
"We have a viable business, real clients, and an independent audit under way.
No one has to pretend this is easy, but no one has to face it alone."
I reassigned financial approvals and appointed an interim operations director.
For the first time in years, the company's decisions did not run through Arthur's office.
The feeling was frightening and liberating.
At home, I began removing objects that reminded me of our marriage.
I kept the books I loved.
I packed the anniversary photographs.
The clock remained in police custody.
I could not bear the thought of another surprise hidden inside a gift.
On the fourth morning, Brooke's lawyer reported that Nathan had tried to contact her through a disposable messaging account.
He demanded that she recant her statement and sign a declaration naming Arthur as the children's genetic father.
She refused and saved the messages.
The detectives used the contact as another lead.
Hours later, Nathan was located at a small private airfield while attempting to travel under an assumed identity.
He was taken into custody without injury.
When I heard, I did not celebrate.
An arrest was a turning point, not a verdict.
That same afternoon, the independent parentage report was delivered under seal to the court.
No one outside the authorized parties was permitted to disclose its contents.
Mara called to explain that my presence at the next hearing was not legally necessary for the parentage issue.
I chose not to attend.
I had spent too long allowing Arthur's dream of fatherhood to define my worth.
The babies deserved privacy, and I deserved a life that did not revolve around the result.
Still, when Arthur's lawyer later asked to arrange a confidential meeting, I knew the truth had reached him.
The message contained only seven words.
May you like
"Arthur wants to acknowledge what the report says."
