Chapter 9
The evening shadows crept across the study floor, turning the rich mahogany tones of the bookshelves into deep, velvety pools of black. Maya switched on the small brass desk lamp, its green glass shade casting a warm, focused circle of light over the papers spread before her. Inside the small envelope was a handwritten ledger filled with dates, locations, and names—mostly unfamiliar, save for a few towns in upstate New York where her family had roots before her mother passed away.
Her father had meticulously documented not just his corporate assets, but a series of small, forgotten properties and charitable trusts that Eleanor had never known existed. For years, Eleanor had believed she controlled the entirety of Faraz’s wealth, funneling corporate dividends into high-yield stocks under her own name. But according to the ledger, her father had systematically siphoned off his personal savings into independent accounts specifically earmarked for Maya’s future independence.
The legal complexity Arthur had hinted at was becoming clear. Eleanor hadn't just lost a house; she had lost control of a phantom empire built entirely beneath her notice. Yet, looking at the columns of numbers, Maya felt no sense of triumph or greed. Instead, she felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow for the loneliness her father must have endured while living alongside a woman who loved power more than she loved him.
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A soft knock at the front door broke the stillness of the evening. Maya froze, her breath catching in her throat. Could Eleanor have returned for something? Or was it the locksmith Arthur had promised, arriving early to change the deadbolts?
She walked quietly down the hallway, the hardwood floor creaking softly beneath her shoes. Reaching the heavy front door, she peered through the brass peephole. Outside, standing under the amber glow of the porch light, was a man in a faded denim jacket, holding a weathered canvas duffel bag. It wasn't Arthur, and it certainly wasn't Eleanor. It was a face from her childhood—Tom, the old groundskeeper who had vanished mysteriously the year Eleanor moved into the house.
