Chapter 8 - The Account for Her Baby
Ava’s hand tightened over her stomach.
“What account?”
Rosa looked ashamed.
“I saw the documents when Mrs. Parker made me scan them at the hotel office.”
Margaret stood.
“That woman is confused.”
“I’m not confused.”
Rosa faced Ava.
“The papers had your name and Ethan’s name. The beneficiary was listed as Baby Parker.”
Ava’s voice dropped.
“My child’s name is not Parker.”
Ethan flinched.
Detective Morales spoke carefully.
“Creating an account for an unborn child is not automatically illegal. Using forged documents to obtain credit would be.”
Ava looked at Ethan.
“Did you apply for credit using our baby?”
“No.”
Margaret answered at the same moment.
“It wasn’t completed.”
The contradiction hung in the air.
Detective Morales turned toward Margaret.
“What wasn’t completed?”
Margaret pressed her lips together.
Ethan began pacing.
“It was just an application.”
“For what?” Ava demanded.
“A family line of credit.”
“In whose name?”
He stopped moving.
“A trust structure.”
“Using my trust?”
“We needed proof of future assets.”
Ava felt nausea rise in her throat.
“You used my pregnancy to make your application look permanent.”
Ethan moved toward her.
“Ava, listen to me. Once we were married, it would have been normal.”
Officer Grant stepped between them.
“Keep your distance.”
Ethan stared over the officer’s shoulder.
“I was trying to protect our family.”
“Our family?” Ava whispered. “You used our baby as collateral.”
“It never went through.”
Detective Morales checked her phone.
“We’re confirming that.”
Margaret began breathing faster.
Then a tone sounded from the detective’s device.
She read the message.
Her expression became unreadable.
“What?” Ethan asked.
Morales looked at Ava first.
“The application did go through.”
Ava’s knees weakened.
Rosa reached for her elbow.
The detective continued.
“A lender issued one hundred and fifty thousand dollars three weeks ago.”
“Where is it?” Ava asked.
Morales looked at Margaret.
“Transferred through Parker Event Holdings and dispersed within forty-eight hours.”
Ethan turned toward his mother.
“You said it was pending.”
Margaret’s face hardened.
“I did what had to be done.”
“For what?”
“To keep you alive.”
The room fell silent.
Ethan stared at her.
Ava did too.
May you like
Margaret had finally said something that frightened even her own son.
👉 Margaret claimed the stolen money had prevented Ethan’s death—but the lender’s real threat was still hidden.
