Chapter 6 - THE OTHER REASON FOR THE MARRIAGE
Ella moved into a guest suite.
Separate floor.
Separate key.
She did not leave the mansion.
Not yet.
Because Mara uncovered something worse.
The Ashbourne marriage clause was not just about Ethan inheriting control.
It also protected the spouse.
Victor’s final trust amendment gave Ethan’s lawful spouse an independent veto over any sale of Ashbourne Children’s Hospitals.
Ella stared at the clause.
“Why?”
Mara answered:
“Because Victor believed Ethan might become too aggressive once he took control.”
“That’s rich.”
“Yes.”
The hospitals were technically nonprofit affiliates but controlled through voting rights held by Ashbourne entities.
Marcus wanted them sold to a private healthcare consortium.
Ethan opposed it.
Victor’s final amendment required dual consent:
Ethan plus spouse.
No spouse, no veto.
Marcus’s litigation was partly about that.
Then Ella understood why Ethan had been desperate to marry before the trust battle ended.
Not only money.
Governance.
The hospitals.
Thousands of employees.
Patients.
Still manipulation.
Still wrong.
But bigger.
Then Mara found evidence Ethan had hidden even from her.
A private letter from Victor.
If Ella Whitmore refuses you after learning the truth, release her. Do not use the family to hold her. If she stays, she must have independent counsel and independent authority.
Ella read it twice.
Victor—the supposedly monstrous architect of the test—had at least included a release.
Ethan had not shown her.
Why?
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Because he was afraid she would use it.
That answer told her everything.
