The courtroom smelled of old paper and floor wax.

I sat on the hard wooden bench, Gabriel’s hand resting lightly on my shoulder.

My father sat at the defense table, his tailored suit hanging loosely on his shrunken frame.

He did not look back at me once.

Ethan, however, stared at me with a cold, flat rage.

The evidence was undeniable.

The ledger detailed every shell company, every diverted donation, and the exact offshore accounts used to hide the foundation’s assets.

When Eleanor Price took the stand, her voice was quiet but steady as she described my mother’s final weeks.

She explained how my mother had discovered the theft and how Richard had silenced her.

The jury took less than four hours to reach a verdict.

Guilty on all counts of conspiracy, wire fraud, and grand larceny.

My father received fifteen years at a federal penitentiary.

Ethan was sentenced to twenty.

As the marshals led them away in handcuffs, the metallic click of the restraints sounded incredibly loud in the quiet room.

The Bennett Family Foundation was stripped from our family’s control.