“He wanted to force me out of the city,” I said, a wave of cold anger washing over me. “He wanted to make me desperate enough to give up.”

At the very back of the binder, there was one final document, printed on heavy parchment paper with a gold seal.

It was the original deed to the Whitmore estate, dated thirty years ago.

Attached to it was an unaltered copy of the family covenant.

“Look at the signature line,” Mr. Hayes said, his voice filled with quiet triumph.

The document clearly stated that the estate and the majority of the family trust were to bypass Richard entirely upon the birth of Nathan’s first child.

“He was never the true owner,” Nathan said, staring at the paper. “He was only a trustee. The moment Lily was born, his control over the entire fortune ended legally.”

“And that is why he hid it,” I said. “He knew that if the truth came out, he would have nothing.”

“This is grand larceny, fraud, and extortion,” Mr. Hayes said, picking up the parchment document. “With this, the state will have everything they need to ensure Richard never sees the outside of a cell again.”