Novel-novel oleh Selene Voss

Nobody slept.Ethan got his team to search the building within twenty minutes of getting the message. They looked at security footage and access logs. They checked every person who had entered and exited since we got there. Ethan worked fast and quiet. I watched him from across the room. Thought about what he had said.Both of us.He said it like it meant something more than just the shares, the trust and my uncle. Like it was about something else entirely. I did not know what to think about that so I put it aside and focused on what was right in front of us.Someone in this building was reporting to my uncle.I looked at each face carefully.My mother—She was scared and broken when she came here. It was not her.My father—He kept this secret for twenty years to protect me. It was not him.Grace— She spent four years gathering evidence even when it was hard for her. It was not her.Victoria—She just got here. She had barely said a word.Then there was Daven.Daven who came to us with

Nobody moved for a time.The woman stood inside the door looking at Ethan. Ethan stood across the room looking at her.. I stood between them trying to figure out what was happening."Who is she? " I asked.Ethan did not answer. "Her name is Victoria, " he said finally. "She is my mother."The room became very quiet.My father stood up slowly. He looked at Victoria with an expression that was hard to understand. It was not surprise it was something"You two know each other " I said, looking at my father and Victoria."A long time ago " Victoria said, still looking at me. She was looking at me in a way that felt deliberate. "You have your grandmother's eyes, " she said softly."My grandmother, " I said."Your fathers mother, " she said. "We were friends before everything fell apart."I looked at Ethan. For the time since I met Ethan Voss, he did not seem to know what to do next."This can wait until morning, " my father said quietly. "Everyone needs to rest. There is much to talk abo

My father arrived at the house just before midnight.He looked older than the time I had seen him. Not just tired, he looked older in a way that people do when they have been carrying something for a very long time and it finally becomes too much to hide.He hugged me at the door a hug that said sorry before he even said a word.My mother came out of the bedroom when she heard his voice and they looked at each other across the room something passed between them that I did not understand, something old and complicated that was not meant for my eye.Ethan stepped back to give us some space and I caught his eye as he moved he gave me a nod, a nod that said I am here I am not going anywhere.My father sat down,He looked at me the way parents look at their children when they are about to say something important,something they should have said a long time ago."How much do you know " my father said."About the trust about trust , about the will about all of it " I said.My father nodded slow

I opened the door.And both of them turned to look at me.Daven was sitting on the edge of the bed. Ethan stood with his arms folded, his back against the wall. Neither Daven nor Ethan looked surprised to see me. It was like they both knew I would come."What else?" I said. I looked at Daven. "What did you not tell us about the company and my family?"Daven looked at Ethan. Ethan gave a nod. Then Daven looked back at me."When your uncle first approached me " Daven said, "he told me something about you, Sofia.,About why he needed you. I thought it was just him justifying himself making the whole thing sound bigger than it was.. Now I think he was telling the truth.""Say it " I said to Daven.Daven took a breath."Your grandfather did not just leave the company to your father in the altered will, " he said. "He also set up a trust, a private one. The trust has conditions attached to it. It can only be accessed by a female heir of the family like you Sofia. Not your father, not your un

Ethan moved away.He was across the room before I could say a word, his hand out telling me to keep the call going. He pulled out his phone. Typed fast. I watched him send a message to someone on his team. Tracing the call I thought. I kept the phone to my ear."You went quiet, " the voice said. Still calm. "That is okay. I will wait. I have been waiting a long time.""Who are you? " I said. Even though I already knew."You know who I am Sofia. Grace told you. Ethan told you. I think even your mom told you by now. In her way."His voice was not like I had imagined. I had thought he would sound scary.. He sounded normal. Like a man on a business call.That made him scarier. Not less."What do you want? " I said."The thing I have always wanted, " he said. "What belongs to me. Half of what my dad built. Half of what my brother has had for thirty years while I was left with nothing.""So go to court, " I said. "If the original ‘will’exists, use it. Why all of this? Why Daven? Why me?"A p

The safe house was an apartment on the floor of a building owned by Ethan. He owned it through a company with a name that couldn't be traced back to him.My mother and Grace were in one room. Daven was in another room with two of Ethan's security team outside his door. He wasn't a prisoner. He wasn't free either.Ethan and I were in the room. We were alone. For the time since all this started there were no contracts between us, no audience, no event to perform for. Just the two of us. Everything that had been said and unsaid since I walked into his office.I sat on the couch. Looked at Ethan."Tell me what happened to the person before me, " I said.He was standing by the window. He didn't turn around."Ethan, " I said.He turned."Her name was Nadia, " he said. "She worked for your fathers company seven years ago. She was an accountant. She was sharp and careful. She noticed some things in the books that nobody else had caught and she started asking questions."I said nothing. I just