Chapter 4 - THE EMPTY SAFE
The protective order barred Gregory from contacting me but also prevented me from entering the cabin without supervision.
I returned with Naomi, a deputy, and a resort representative to collect my dress bag and personal belongings.
The room had been cleaned.
The bouquet was gone.
The broken alarm cover had been replaced.
A small wall safe stood open beside the wardrobe.
Gregory had never mentioned it.
Inside, adhesive marks showed that a thick packet had recently been removed.
Behind the safe lining, I found another torn fragment.
It contained part of a legal description matching North Ridge.
Naomi told me not to contact Gregory.
I called him from the parking lot.
“What was in the safe?”
His breathing changed.
“You broke into it?”
“It was open.”
“You need to stop accusing my family.”
“Why was my land description in our wedding cabin?”
“Dad prepared a surprise investment proposal.”
“With a baseball bat?”
“You made the bat part of this.”
I told him about the torn page.
That was my mistake.
By evening, his attorneys knew exactly what evidence remained.
The next morning they accused me of removing confidential documents from the cabin and destroying the rest.
The resort claimed the safe had been empty before our arrival.
Naomi did not shout at me.
Her disappointment was worse.
“You gave them time to shape an answer.”
“I wanted him to react.”
“You are not conducting an interrogation.”
“I know.”
“No. You know now.”
Before I could answer, a survey crew arrived at North Ridge.
They carried a temporary access authorization bearing my electronic signature.
The document had been executed at 4:16 on my wedding day.
At that time, I had been standing before two hundred guests saying my vows.
May you like
The verification data came from my bridal tablet.
The same tablet Gregory held in the photograph.
