It was Pax, Rylan’s brother, his voice low and nervous.

“If she looks at the accounts, she’ll see the transfers,” Pax said.

I leaned closer to the crack in the door, my heart hammering in my ears.

“She won’t look,” Solene said.

“She’s too weak for a fight.”

“We just need to keep the pressure on her.”

“Make her feel like she’s losing her mind in this old place.”

“Once she’s stressed enough, she’ll agree to sell.”

“We split the money, and we’re finally done with this house.”

I felt a wave of cold fury wash over me.

My hand gripped the edge of the doorframe.

Inside the room, someone stood up, their shadow moving across the wall.

A floorboard creaked right next to me.

I held my breath, pressing my shoulders flat against the floral wallpaper of the hallway.

The draft from the front door chilled the back of my neck.

“Did you hear that?” Pax asked.

His voice was thin, vibrating with a nervous edge.

“It is an old house, Pax,” Solene said, her tone dripping with impatience. “The wood expands. It does it every time the temperature drops.”