Chapter 4 - THE BLACK LEATHER FILEAt three in the morning, Clara entered Evelyn's study.
The mansion was completely silent.
Moonlight cut through the blinds, illuminating shelves filled with antique books, family portraits, and expensive objects that had belonged to generations of Vances.
Clara opened drawer after drawer.
Her hands trembled.
Then she found it.
A black leather binder.
VANCE FAMILY TRUST.
She opened it.
The legal language was complicated, but one number immediately caught her attention.
$50,000,000.
Clara's eyes widened.
Julian's late father had created an irrevocable trust.
The money would become active upon the birth of Julian's first child.
But there was a condition.
If the child's mother relinquished custody, control of the trust would transfer to Evelyn.
Clara read the sentence again.
Then again.
Everything suddenly made sense.
Evelyn wasn't obsessed with Leo because he was her grandson.
She needed him.
Evelyn's private investments had collapsed.
Her gambling debts were enormous.
Millions of dollars were disappearing.
And Leo's birth had created a financial lifeline.
Clara's hands went cold.
She photographed the documents with her phone.
Then she heard it.
Click.
The study door opened.
Evelyn stood in the doorway.
Neither woman moved.
Evelyn looked at the binder.
Then at Clara.
A slow smile appeared.
“Well…”
May you like
Her voice was almost gentle.
“Now you know.”
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