Chapter 17 - The Counterattack
I finally understood the difference between my parents.
Richard wanted the money because he believed he deserved it.
Eleanor wanted control because she feared what the money's records would reveal.
The trust wasn't simply a fortune.
It was a trail.
And my grandfather had left that trail to someone he believed would not bury it.
David's accounting team traced the shell companies to contracts, properties, and accounts that ordinary estate reviews had missed.
A significant portion of the money had been moved through entities controlled by Eleanor.
The records supported claims of unauthorized transfers, though each transaction still required individual scrutiny.
Helen prepared a comprehensive complaint seeking appropriate civil remedies and coordinated evidence preservation with investigators.
Our aim was not to punish my parents through publicity.
It was to protect the estate and establish what had happened.
At the next hearing, my father's attorney announced that Richard wished to negotiate.
He offered to abandon his claim to the inheritance if I agreed to withdraw the allegations and keep the recovered recordings confidential.
My mother sat behind him, expressionless.
It was the first time either parent had offered to relinquish the estate.
I felt a brief surge of relief.
Then Helen pointed out that a civil settlement could not erase evidence relevant to possible crimes or undo obligations to third parties.
Richard's attorney asked for a private conference.
We declined any discussion premised on suppressing evidence.
Outside, a reporter asked whether I intended to send my parents to prison.
I answered carefully.
“I intend to tell the truth.”
A second reporter asked if I still loved them.
The question landed harder.
I thought of my mother brushing my hair when I was seven.
I thought of my father refusing to attend my commissioning.
“I loved the family I believed I had,” I said.
Then I walked away.
That evening, Thomas Vale's former bookkeeper contacted investigators.
She had retained invoices and messages after a dispute over unpaid wages.
Several invoices referred to surveillance of Samuel Grant.
One appeared to authorize monitoring of a humanitarian convoy.
A message from Vale said the route had changed unexpectedly.
Another, sent minutes before the attack, said the target was in transit.
It was terrible evidence, but it still left crucial questions unanswered.
Who authorized unlawful conduct?
Who knew violence was possible?
Who paid after Samuel's death?
The bookkeeper agreed to testify to the records she had personally handled.
Then a new account statement arrived.
My mother had transferred a large sum to Vale's company the morning after the explosion.
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The payment memo read FINAL EXPENSES.
