Julian walked over to the dining table and cleared off a space among Mrs. Ramirez’s ceramic coasters.

He opened his laptop and plugged in the flash drive.

A series of folders appeared on the screen, labeled with dates from a decade ago.

“Look at this, Grace,” Julian said, pointing to a document on the screen.

The document was a technical blueprint for the automated energy distribution system.

At the bottom of the page, in the digital signature block, was Julian’s name.

But right next to it, under the witness line, was a signature that made my blood run cold.

It was a name I recognized instantly from the old company archives.

“That’s Thomas Caldwell,” I whispered, looking at the faded digital ink of Ethan’s father’s name.

“He signed off on your ownership.”

“Yes,” Julian said, his eyes burning. “And that’s why they had to get rid of him, too.”

Before I could ask what he meant, a loud, sharp knock rattled the front door.

We all froze, the sound echoing through the quiet house.

Mrs. Ramirez gasped, her hand flying to her chest.