Chapter 2 - The Sealed Envelope
The funeral ended, but the storm was just beginning.
I intended to get back in the SUV and drive away forever.
I had done my duty. I had honored the only Sterling who had a heart.
But as I buckled Emma into her car seat, a man in a sharp black suit approached us.
"Captain Vance," he said.
I turned. It was Arthur Pendelton, the Sterling family's most trusted estate lawyer.
"What is it, Arthur?" I asked.
"Harrison left specific instructions," Arthur said, holding a leather briefcase tightly to his chest. "You are required at the reading of the will."
I frowned. "I'm not a Sterling anymore."
"He knew that," Arthur replied. "But he insisted. And he asked me to make sure the children were present."
I looked back at Julian, who was standing a few yards away, paralyzed, watching us.
Victoria was clutching his arm, whispering frantically into his ear.
"Fine," I said. "We will follow you to the estate."
The Sterling Manor looked exactly as cold and imposing as I remembered.
Ten years ago, I was dragged out of these front doors, accused of infidelity, stripped of my dignity.
Today, I walked through them with military precision, my five children walking behind me in a disciplined, quiet line.
The extended family was already gathered in the grand library.
When I walked in, the room went dead silent.
Victoria stood up from a leather armchair. "Arthur, this is a private family matter. She has no right to be here."
Arthur ignored her. He unlocked his briefcase.
"I am executing the last will and testament of Harrison Sterling," Arthur announced. "And I will do so exactly as he dictated."
Julian was staring at me. He hadn't blinked. He hadn't stopped looking at the kids.
"To my son, Julian," Arthur read, "I leave the company, on one condition."
The room gasped.
"You must face the ghosts you created," Arthur continued reading Harrison's words. "I spent the last ten years investigating the lies that destroyed our family."
Victoria's face turned ash-white.
"I found the doctored hospital records," Arthur read. "I found the offshore accounts used to pay off the witnesses."
Julian's head snapped toward Victoria.
"I found everything, Julian," the letter continued. "Genevieve never betrayed you. You betrayed her by not listening."
I closed my eyes. Harrison had known.
In his final days, the old man had finally figured it out.
May you like
"And to my grandchildren," Arthur said, turning to look directly at my five children. "I leave my entire personal estate, the controlling shares of the Sterling Trust, and the Manor itself."
Victoria screamed.
