Caleb hadn’t just been stealing from me.

He had been building a parallel empire using my dead wife’s stolen inheritance.

“He wanted both fortunes,” I said, the realization tasting like ash in my mouth. “He wanted to bleed me dry from the inside, then step into my place.”

“Yes,” Clara whispered. “He has the offshore routing numbers. He has the primary accounts.”

I turned to Nora, who was holding Lila tightly against her chest in the shadow of the concrete pillar.

Lila’s wide, dark eyes stared at me, reflecting the dim yellow light of the single overhead bulb.

“Nora, take Lila to the secure vault behind the wine cellar,” I said.

Nora nodded, her face pale but her jaw set in a firm line.

“What about Clara?” Nora asked.

“Marcus will carry her,” I said. “We don’t leave anyone behind.”

Marcus stepped forward and carefully scooped Clara into his massive arms.

She weighed almost nothing, like a bundle of dry sticks wrapped in a dirty blanket.

Daniel’s voice crackled through my earpiece again, loud and distorted.

“Adrian, they’ve passed the outer gate,” Daniel said. “They didn’t use explosives. They had the gate codes.”