“There’s one more thing.”
I nearly refused to look.
Inside was a second letter.
Not from Danny.
From Robert.
Written before he died.
Addressed to Claire.
I read it twice.
Then a third time.
Robert had discovered Claire trying to access documents connected to the trust years earlier.
He warned her explicitly.
The house belonged beneficially to me.
The trust existed
because he knew I would never protect myself
financially.
Then came the sentence that finally broke whatever illusion remained.
If you ever use Cole’s loyalty against him, understand that I built this arrangement precisely because I suspected one day you might.
I stared at the page.
Robert had known.
Maybe not about Derek.
Not about the forged loan.
Not about Melissa.
But he had seen something I hadn’t.
