Chapter 5: Inheritance

The atmosphere inside Carter Manor was nothing like a grieving household.

Blueprints of wealth covered the dining table, property files, share certificates, trust documents.

Ashley wasn't even buried. Yet everyone was already discussing what she had left behind.

Gaby sat beside the family lawyer with a calculator in her hand.

"If Ashley is legally declared deceased, these shares should automatically transfer through the family estate."

The lawyer adjusted his glasses. "Not necessarily."

Anna leaned forward. "What do you mean, not necessarily?"

"The late Mr. Carter structured his granddaughter's inheritance differently."

Anna frowned. "So who gets what?"

"That depends on several legal conditions."

Travis suddenly walked in beside his mother, Charlotte Blackwood.

Charlotte didn't bother sitting. "If we're discussing Ashley's inheritance, my son deserves his portion."

The lawyer looked confused. "On what grounds?"

Charlotte folded her arms. "He was her fiancé."

Gaby's eyes narrowed. "They never got married."

"They were hours away from marriage."

Gaby laughed. "Hours don't count in court."

Travis slammed a file onto the table. "I spent eight years with Ashley. This is our engagement certificate.”

“But you cheated on her before the wedding," Vivian muttered to everyone's hearing. 

Travis shot her an angry glare.

Anna quickly interrupted. "Can we stay focused?"

The lawyer cleared his throat, "Legally speaking, none of this matters yet."

Everyone looked at him. "Why?"

"Because Ashley Carter isn't officially dead. The authorities recovered her vehicle. Not her body. Until a body is recovered or the court legally declares her dead, no inheritance can be distributed."

Charlotte's face hardened. "How long could that take?"

"It depends."

Just then, Anna's phone vibrated. A text from her secret lover and baby daddy, Mason.

She frowned before opening the message, she had told him never to contact her in case she was with Travis. Her face was drained of color immediately she read the message. 

"What is it?" Travis asked, moving towards her. 

Anna quickly stood. "You may leave now," she told the lawyer.

The confused man gathered his briefcase and exited.

The second the front door closed, Anna looked at everyone. Her hands trembled.

Vivian asked, "What happened?"

Anna swallowed hard before speaking, “I think Ashley Carter is alive.”

The room fell into stunned silence.

Charlotte was the first to speak, "That's impossible. The accident. The car. The fall.” 

Anna slowly lifted her eyes toward Vivian, the fury burning behind it was unmistakable.

Vivian had one job. And somehow. Ashley had survived.

*****

Ashley's father, Martin Carter slammed the whiskey glass onto his desk, the crystal shattering beneath the force of the impact.

"Damn it!"

His office was in complete disarray. Confidential files were scattered across the floor, the television in the room broadcast the breaking news.

“Police Raid Major Drug Distribution Warehouse. Authorities Believe a High Profile Figure Is Involved.”

He snatched the remote and switched the television off. His phone suddenly vibrated. 

It was an unknown number.

He answered immediately. "What?"

"Martin, they got the warehouse."

His expression darkened. "I know."

"They're questioning everyone. One of the men says if they arrest him... he'll tell them everything."

Dr. Carter's blood ran cold. “What did you say?"

"He said he's not going to prison alone."

The call ended.

For several seconds, he simply stared at the black screen of his phone.

His entire operation was collapsing.

Years of building an underground empire behind the respectable image of a renowned surgeon could disappear overnight.

He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.

"This is all your fault, old man."

His gaze shifted to the portrait hanging behind his desk.

His late father-in-law and the founder of Carter Group. The man who had never trusted him.

"I gave your daughter everything," Martin muttered bitterly. "I expanded your company. I made your name even more powerful."

Yet when the old man died...Not a single cent of the fortune had been left to him.

Instead, every controlling share, every trust fund, every valuable asset had been placed under Ashley's name.

His jaw tightened. "I married into this family for nothing."

Martin's mind drifted back years. His wife, Ashley's mother, Danika had discovered too much.

She had started asking questions about missing money, about secret accounts. About shipments that had nothing to do with Carter Group.

She had threatened to expose him.

A week later, her brakes had mysteriously failed on a mountain road.

Everyone had called it a tragic accident.

Only Martin knew the truth.

He had buried his wife, only to discover that her father had already rewritten his will months before her death. The inheritance had never been hers but their daughters’. 

His sacrifice had accomplished nothing.

Now Ashley was the final obstacle standing between him and absolute control. 

His fingers tapped against the polished desk.

"Ashley. If you walk back into my life..." He leaned back in his chair, “I'll finish what I started with your mother."

A knock sounded on the office door. Gaby and Anna stepped inside.

"The police are here." Gaby announced. 

He put on a polished smile that had fooled the world for years. "Let them in."

If Ashley was alive, he would have to find her first and he wouldn't leave anything to chance.