Their footsteps echoed down the hallway and down the stairs.

A moment later, the front door slammed shut again, rattling the windows.

I sank onto the edge of the mattress, my knees shaking.

“Thank you, Henry,” I whispered.

“They are getting desperate, Eleanor,” Henry said, walking over to the window.

He looked out at the driveway as Victoria’s car started up and drove away.

“They know Garrett’s real papers are somewhere in this house.”

“I’ve searched everywhere,” I said, looking at the empty drawers.

“Garrett was a smart man,” Henry said, turning back to me.

“He knew his children would try to strip you of everything.”

He put a hand on my shoulder, his expression grave.

“I have to go back to the office to file an injunction,” Henry said.

“But you must find those documents before they return with a deputy.”

He walked out of the room, leaving me alone in the quiet house.

The silence felt heavier now, filled with the ghosts of my past.

I walked down the stairs, my boots clicking on the cold marble of the foyer.