“She knew.”
He closed his eyes.
“She knew.”
Erin’s voice was barely audible.
“She said sentimental things were easier to remove before anyone had time to think.”
That was the moment something changed in me.
Until then, some small part of my heart had wanted to believe Sabrina was simply greedy and foolish.
But she had studied what mattered to us.
She had identified the memories that made us vulnerable.
And she had decided those memories were obstacles.
I looked toward Diane.
“I want everything investigated.”
She nodded.
“I understand.”
“No private agreement that requires me to pretend nothing happened.”
Caleb turned toward me.
“Mom?”
I looked at him.
“I will not spend the rest of my life being afraid of people who believe kindness makes me weak.”
He walked across the room and stood beside me.
“Then you won’t.”
The months that followed were exhausting.
There were interviews, statements, document examinations, and countless meetings.
The property transaction was halted.
The disputed authorizations were formally challenged.
Financial investigators traced the payments connected to Victor’s development proposal.
As the evidence accumulated, the investors withdrew from the project.
Victor’s lenders demanded explanations for the money he had received and the representations he had made.
His company began to unravel.
Sabrina initially denied everything.
