Chapter 2: The Name Inside the Folder
I shook my head.
Gabriel opened the folder.
“Twelve years ago, your father created a trust.
He put the company shares, the house, and most of his money in your name.”
“But Veronica said he left everything to her.”
“She was never supposed to control it.”
My hands began to tremble.
“Then why did Dad stop speaking to you?”
“Because I warned him about her.
Veronica found out and convinced Alexander I was trying to take his company.
He chose his marriage over his brother.”
Gabriel pulled out a document bearing my father’s signature.
“This is the original.
Your father made me trustee until you turned eighteen.
If Veronica filed a different will, she knew this existed.”
Lucille’s kitchen phone suddenly rang.
She answered, listened, then looked at Gabriel.
“It’s Veronica.
She says Matthew ran away and took something valuable from the house.”
“I didn’t take anything!” I cried.
Gabriel’s expression hardened.
“Ask her what he took.”
Lucille repeated the question.
Veronica’s answer was so loud I heard every word.
“The CVS receipt.
Tell him to give it back.”
Gabriel slowly turned toward the paper in my hand.
“Matthew,” he whispered, “your father didn’t write that note in the hospital.”
Before I could ask what he meant, someone pounded on Lucille’s front door.
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What did Veronica know about the receipt—and who was at the door?
Click the link below to read Matthew’s full story.
