Chapter 10 - The Missing Years
The investigation led Clara backward.
Ten years.
Then fifteen.
Then twenty.
She discovered that the family finances had been unstable long before she had realized.
Robert had not built his wealth alone.
His father had.
And when the older man died, the inheritance had been divided differently than the family story suggested.
Marjorie had received control over several trusts.
Robert believed he had received the majority of the estate.
He had not.
Clara found a private memorandum.
It mentioned a beneficiary.
A name had been redacted.
Only the initials remained.
C.V.
Clara stared at the letters.
Her first thought was herself.
Then she realized the document had been written years before she was born.
C.V.
Could mean Clara Vale.
But it could also mean someone else.
She contacted the attorney handling the old estate.
He refused to speak by phone.
They arranged a meeting.
When Clara arrived, the attorney placed a sealed envelope on the desk.
"You should have received this years ago."
Clara stared at it.
"Why didn't I?"
"Because your mother instructed us not to deliver it."
Clara's pulse quickened.
"What is inside?"
May you like
The attorney looked at her.
"Something that may change who you think your father is."
