Chapter 7 - THE FAMILY TREE WAS A LIE
The truth was worse than I imagined.
Lauren Hale wasn't Victor's daughter.
She was his granddaughter.
Her mother was Victor's first child, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth had died twenty-eight years earlier.
Her death had been ruled accidental.
Marcus placed the old report on the table.
“Your grandmother believed it wasn't an accident.”
“Why?”
“Because Elizabeth was investigating Bellweather's original money.”
I felt a chill.
“So Victor built the trust for Tyler?”
“No.”
Marcus shook his head.
“He built it for both children.”
“Both?”
“Tyler and Lauren.”
I stared at the documents.
Then I understood why Bellweather had spent years pretending Victor was dead.
If Victor were alive, the trust could be challenged.
If Tyler's identity remained hidden, Lauren could claim the entire inheritance.
And if I could be removed as trustee, Bellweather could seize the voting shares.
It was an elaborate chain.
But there was still one question.
Why had Dad forced Tyler into my apartment?
Marcus answered.
“To create a legal dispute.”
I frowned.
“Between Tyler and me?”
“Yes.”
“If Tyler claimed residency, your father could argue that the building was family property.”
“And if you evicted him?”
“They could accuse me of interfering with his inheritance.”
Elena nodded.
“It would create the appearance of financial hostility.”
I suddenly remembered Dad's words.
You're single. You have savings. You have options.
He had been building a narrative.
One where I looked selfish.
One where Tyler looked vulnerable.
One where Dad could tell a judge that I had abandoned my family.
Then I remembered the forged loan.
They didn't need to win immediately.
They only needed to create enough confusion to freeze the property.
I looked at Tyler.
“You knew none of this.”
“No.”
“Why did Dad tell you to move in?”
“He said if I didn't, Mom would lose the house.”
I looked at him.
“Tyler, did Dad ever ask you to sign anything?”
He hesitated.
“Yes.”
“What?”
“A residency affidavit.”
My stomach dropped.
“Did you sign it?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Last week.”
Elena closed her eyes.
“That's the document they needed.”
Tyler looked horrified.
“What did I sign?”
“A statement saying you were a beneficiary living at the property with the owner's permission.”
I looked at him.
“Did you know it was mine?”
“No.”
“And Dad told you it wasn't?”
“Yes.”
I stood.
“Then we're not going to fight each other.”
Tyler looked at me.
“What are we going to do?”
“Expose him.”
We returned to Carter House.
The lobby was empty.
But Dad's black SUV was parked outside.
He was waiting.
When he entered, he carried a leather briefcase.
“You're making a mistake,” he said.
“No,” I replied. “You did.”
He looked at Tyler.
“Come with me.”
Tyler didn't move.
Dad's expression hardened.
“Son.”
Tyler shook his head.
“I know who my father was.”
Dad went completely still.
“You don't know anything.”
“I know Victor Hale was my father.”
For the first time, Dad looked genuinely afraid.
Then he opened the briefcase.
Inside was a gun.
Elena stepped backward.
Dad placed it on the table.
“Then you know why none of you are walking away with that trust.”
I stared at him.
“You're threatening your own children?”
He looked at me.
“No.”
His voice was cold.
“I'm threatening the people who stole what belongs to me.”
Before anyone could move, the building lights went out.
May you like
A gunshot echoed through the lobby.
And when the emergency lights came on, Dad was gone.
