Chapter 4
My father had died at home.
That was what I had been told.
Sudden cardiac arrest.
No warning.
No suspicion.
Just gone.
Julian had held me at the funeral and promised he would help me carry the company.
Eleanor had stood beside him in black silk, crying into a handkerchief.
Now I wondered whether any of those tears were real.
“Call the medical examiner,” Sarah said.
The room moved around me.
Police.
Doctors.
Security.
Hazel sleeping against my chest like the world had not just cracked open under her tiny feet.
I watched Julian through the glass.
He was no longer speaking.
He was staring at me.
For the first time in eleven years, he looked afraid of what I knew.
A detective named Mara Collins entered.
She had calm eyes and a tired face.
“Mrs. Vance, I need to ask a few questions.”
“Ask.”
“Did your husband or mother-in-law pressure you to sign documents before today?”
“Yes.”
“How often?”
“Every week since the third trimester.”
“What changed?”
I looked at Hazel.
“I gave birth.”
Sarah added, “And my client became physically vulnerable.”
Detective Collins wrote that down.
Then she asked, “Do you have reason to believe this connects to your father’s death?”
My throat tightened.
“I do now.”
The detective’s eyes sharpened.
Before I could say more, the hospital intercom announced a security lockdown on our floor.
A nurse rushed in.
“Someone tried to enter the nursery with forged discharge papers.”
My arms tightened around Hazel.
Julian shouted from the hallway.
“That is my daughter!”
I screamed, “Do not let him near her!”
Security pushed him back.
Eleanor’s voice rose behind him.
“You are making a spectacle!”
Sarah turned to the detective.
“Now would be a good time for arrests.”
Detective Collins stepped into the hall.
Julian fought.
Eleanor screamed.
Victoria cried.
I held my daughter while my husband was handcuffed ten feet from my bed.
He looked at me as they led him away.
“Gen, please.”
May you like
I stared back.
“You should have begged before you touched the bassinet.”
