Chapter 6
I couldn't stop staring at the transfer request.
The house.
Grandpa's house.
My home.
The place where I'd learned to ride a bicycle in the driveway.
Where Grandpa taught me how to make scrambled eggs.
Where I slept beside his bed after bad dreams.
Someone was trying to take it away.
I looked at Daniel.
"Can Grandma do that?"
He shook his head.
"Not simply because she wants to. We need to verify the legal authority behind the request."
My stomach tightened.
"Who submitted it?"
Daniel hesitated.
"The paperwork came from an office connected to Claire's financial adviser."
I stared at him.
"Grandma has a financial adviser?"
Aunt Renee nodded slowly.
"She started working with a man named Victor Hale last year."
Adrian frowned.
"Who is he?"
Renee looked uncomfortable.
"Someone Mom met through a property investment group."
I felt cold.
Grandma had been telling me we barely had enough money for school expenses.
Yet she'd hired someone to help manage investments.
Daniel closed the file.
"We need an independent accounting and a court order protecting the property while the estate is administered."
I looked at Adrian.
He crouched beside me.
"Hey."
I swallowed.
"What?"
"You have somewhere safe to stay."
My eyes filled.
"With you?"
He nodded.
"If that's what you want, and once the legal arrangements allow it."
I stared at him.
I'd imagined living with my father for years.
But now that he was here, everything felt complicated.
I loved Grandpa's house.
I loved my bedroom.
I loved the memories.
And despite everything, Grandma was still my grandmother.
I didn't know whether I wanted to leave her forever.
Adrian seemed to understand.
"You don't have to decide anything tonight."
I nodded.
"Okay."
That evening, Daniel arranged a meeting with a child welfare specialist and an attorney experienced in custody matters.
They explained that any change in my living arrangements needed to consider my safety, my wishes, my existing guardianship, and Adrian's parental rights.
For the first time, adults talked about me as though my feelings mattered.
They asked whether Grandma had ever hurt me.
I hesitated.
Then I told the truth.
She grabbed my shoulders when she was angry.
She called me ungrateful.
She threatened to send me away.
She told me Grandpa left me nothing.
And she kept my father's letters hidden.
I felt ashamed describing it.
But the specialist looked at me gently.
"You haven't done anything wrong, Maya."
I stared at my hands.
"Are you sure?"
She nodded.
"Absolutely."
I started crying.
Because for years, Grandma had made me believe every argument was my fault.
If I cried, I was dramatic.
If I asked questions, I was disrespectful.
If I wanted something, I was selfish.
Now someone was telling me that wanting answers didn't make me bad.
I looked toward Adrian.
He smiled sadly.
"I'm proud of you."
I swallowed.
"Why?"
"Because telling the truth can be hard."
I nodded.
It was hard.
But I was beginning to understand that silence had hurt our family more than honesty ever could.
The next morning, Daniel called.
A temporary order had been requested to prevent disputed property transfers.
The estate administration was being reviewed.
And the court had scheduled a hearing concerning my care.
I felt nervous.
"Will Grandma be there?"
"Probably."
I swallowed.
"Will she be angry?"
Daniel paused.
"She may be."
My chest tightened.
Adrian took the phone.
"Daniel, I don't want Maya feeling responsible for Claire's reaction."
Daniel agreed.
"Neither do I."
After the call, Adrian sat beside me.
"Sweetheart, people can be angry about boundaries. That doesn't make the boundaries wrong."
I looked at him.
"Grandpa used to say something like that."
Adrian smiled.
"Sounds like he was a wise man."
I nodded.
"He was."
Then I asked something I'd been afraid to say.
"Can we visit his grave?"
Adrian's eyes softened.
"Of course."
We drove to the cemetery that afternoon.
Grandpa's grave was covered with fresh flowers.
His name was engraved on a temporary marker.
MARCUS BENNETT.
BELOVED HUSBAND, FATHER, GRANDFATHER.
I knelt beside it.
For a long time, I couldn't speak.
Then I whispered, "Hi, Grandpa."
Adrian stood a few feet away.
Giving me space.
I touched the flowers.
"I met my dad."
My voice broke.
"You were right. He wanted me."
Tears streamed down my cheeks.
"I wish you could see us together."
I stared at the marker.
"I wish you could tell me why Grandma did all this."
The wind moved softly through the trees.
I wiped my face.
"I miss you so much."
Then I placed the photograph from the blue envelope beside the flowers.
I didn't leave the original.
Just a copy.
I wanted the real photograph close to my heart.
Adrian approached quietly.
He knelt beside me.
"May I say something?"
I nodded.
He looked toward the grave.
"Mr. Bennett, I never got the chance to thank you."
His voice trembled.
"For loving my daughter."
I covered my mouth.
Adrian continued.
"For keeping her safe when I couldn't reach her."
He paused.
"And for trying to bring us together."
I began crying harder.
He placed a hand over mine.
"I promise I'll do everything I can to be the father she deserves."
I leaned against him.
For the first time since Grandpa died, grief and hope existed together.
I still missed him.
But I wasn't alone.
When we returned to Daniel's office, he had another update.
The estate's accountant had found several withdrawals that required explanation.
Some were ordinary household expenses.
Others involved transfers to accounts associated with Victor Hale.
Daniel remained careful.
"We need to investigate whether these transactions were authorized."
Adrian nodded.
"How much money?"
Daniel looked at the figures.
"Potentially several hundred thousand dollars."
My stomach dropped.
Grandpa had worked his entire life.
He owned a small construction company.
He saved carefully.
He always told me money should be used to build security, not buy attention.
Now someone might have taken hundreds of thousands of dollars from the trust he created for me.
I looked at Daniel.
"Does Grandma know about these transfers?"
He hesitated.
"Her name appears on several authorizations."
I closed my eyes.
I wanted to believe there was an explanation.
Maybe she'd misunderstood.
Maybe Victor had tricked her.
Maybe she hadn't known.
But I remembered how quickly she'd reached for Grandpa's envelope at the funeral.
How she'd threatened me.
How she'd tried to stop Daniel from telling the truth.
Something inside me knew this wasn't a simple mistake.
Then the office door opened.
A receptionist stepped inside.
"Mr. Brooks?"
Daniel looked up.
"Yes?"
"There's a woman here asking to see you."
"Who?"
The receptionist hesitated.
"She says she's Claire Bennett."
My heart stopped.
Grandma.
Adrian immediately moved closer to me.
Daniel stood.
"Please ask her to wait."
But before the receptionist could respond, Grandma's voice echoed from the hallway.
"I KNOW MY GRANDDAUGHTER IS IN THERE!"
I froze.
May you like
Then I heard her footsteps approaching.
And I realized she had come to fight for control one more time.
