He pointed to a single page on the screen of his laptop.

“Look at this clause,” he said.

I leaned over the desk, reading the small legal print.

*“In the event that physical custody of the minors, Lily and Owen Vale, is transferred to any party other than Marissa Vale, all monthly disbursements from the primary estate trust to the guardian shall cease immediately, and the funds shall be redirected to a restricted holding account.”*

“She doesn’t just need custody to access the forty million,” I whispered.

“She needs them under her roof to keep getting her monthly allowance.”

“Exactly,” Ryker said.

“Without the kids, she is completely broke.”

“But there’s more,” Marco said, entering the room with a fresh printout.

He handed a single sheet of paper to Ryker.

“We just ran the signature on Arthur’s will through our forensic analyst,” Marco said.

Ryker looked at the analysis, his eyes widening slightly.

He looked up at me, the tension in his face deeper than before.

“The witness signature,” Ryker said.

“The one we saw earlier.”

“Whose name is it?” I asked, my heart stopping.