Chapter 37
Evelyn's eyes reddened.
Her teeth clamped down on the inside of her lower lip.
Hard.
The metallic taste of blood spread through her mouth.
She didn't cry.
She'd learned at six not to cry in front of strangers. Her mother had taught her. "Eve, crying doesn't help."
But when her mother had written that final line, the ink at the end of the word "clean" had a slight bleed—a water drop.
Evelyn stared at that smudged spot.
Twenty-six years ago, her mother had let a tear fall onto that page.
Evelyn straightened up.
Her spine was rigid. Hands at her sides, crescent-shaped nail marks pressed into her palms.
She didn't turn around.
Her voice was flat, emotionless.
"Mr. Russell."
"Ms. Kendall."
"What's the legal validity of this will?"
Zack pushed up his glasses.
"The will was handwritten by Ms. Hawk with signature, date, and thumbprint. It meets all statutory requirements for a holographic will. Hawk family legal counsel has maintained custody for twenty-six years with a complete chain of custody. If necessary, we can commission a forensic handwriting analysis."
Evelyn gave a slight nod.
"I want a copy. Keep the original on file."
"Already prepared."
Zack pulled a photocopy from his briefcase and handed it over.
Evelyn took it without looking at the contents again. She folded the copy once and tucked it into her bag.
Then she turned around.
Faced the two people sitting on the sofas.
Richard's fingers gripped the armrest, his knuckles wrinkled like tree bark. His eyes were ringed red.
Evelyn looked at him.
"Grandpa."
Richard's lips trembled.
"The will says they were deliberately torn apart. What kind of setup? Who did it?"
The question landed like an ultimatum.
Richard's throat made a muffled sound.
He raised his hand, signaling the butler Allen for water.
Allen stepped out from the corner, lifted the kettle, and poured water into a teacup. Steam rose, spreading a thin mist in front of Richard.
Richard picked up the cup and took a sip.
Set it back on the armrest.
Porcelain on rosewood—a soft clink.
"The person who set up your mother back then was—"
His voice broke on that word.
A violent cough erupted from his chest. Richard's body bent forward, the blanket on his knees sliding to the floor.
Allen rushed to support his back.
Sebastian stood from the sofa and took a step.
Evelyn didn't move.
She stood in place, watching Richard cough until his face went red and his lips turned purple while Allen frantically patted his back.
She didn't go to him.
She couldn't take being interrupted again.
Every time she was one sentence away from the truth, something got in the way. Arianna's phone call. Sebastian walking away. Or someone's sudden collapse.
Not this time.
The coughing lasted nearly a minute.
Richard recovered, tears at the corners of his eyes from choking.
He pushed away Allen's hand.
Raised his head.
Cloudy eyes locked on Evelyn's face.
He reached out his hand.
Evelyn hesitated for a second, then stepped forward.
Richard grabbed her wrist, his grip surprisingly strong. His knuckles dug into her wrist bone, almost leaving marks.
His lips trembled, breath squeezing through his teeth.
Two words.
"The Ashford family."
Evelyn's wrist froze in his grip.
No one in the living room spoke.
The old grandfather clock's second hand ticked four times.
Evelyn looked down at the hand gripping her wrist. Veins stood out on the back, the outline of bones clearly visible beneath the skin.
The Ashford family.
Those words echoed in her mind.
In the few seconds she stood there, her brain ran at high speed—
Her mother carrying that reputation her whole life. Frederick collapsing at the banquet the moment he saw her. Nason grinding his teeth in the parking lot when he said "my sister was cast out." The Hawk family crest on the silver ring. Three years at the Ashford Estate with Richard's meticulous care.
An old man who'd been guilty for thirty years.
A sin committed by the Ashford family.
All the clues connected.
Evelyn slowly withdrew her wrist from Richard's fingers, the movement gentle, no force behind it.
She stepped back and straightened.
"Explain."
Richard's breathing still hadn't fully steadied. He leaned against the back of the rosewood chair, chest rising and falling. Allen brought over a hot towel. He waved it away.
He closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again, a sheen of moisture covered the clouded irises.
"Thirty years ago... your mother Lily fell in love with a man from an established family. Both were unmarried. That man's family was negotiating an arranged marriage with the Hawk family at the time, but not with your mother. With another girl from an even more prominent household."
He paused for two seconds.
"Your grandmother... Seb's grandmother was still running Ashford family affairs then. Half of the Ashford family's business interests were tied to the Hawk family. If the Hawks successfully allied with that other family through marriage, the combined weight of the two would directly overshadow the Ashford family. Your grandmother wouldn't allow that to happen."
Evelyn's hands hung at her sides, fingers slowly curling.
"She had people investigate Lily's relationship with that man. After they confirmed the two were frequently meeting in private, she did something."
Richard's lips quivered.
"She had someone forge evidence—intimate photos of your mother with a married businessman. The photos were composites. The technology back then was crude, but enough to convince a father in a rage."
The tip of Evelyn's right middle finger pressed into her palm, leaving a white mark.
"Your grandmother had this forged evidence delivered to Frederick through an intermediary."
Richard looked up at Evelyn.
"Frederick—you've met him. Rigid, arrogant, couldn't tolerate the slightest stain. He saw those photos and didn't verify a single thing with his daughter. That same day he called your mother into his study, threw the photos at her, and said... very ugly things. Then he ordered her to leave the Hawk family within three days."
Evelyn's throat moved once.
"Your mother was already two months pregnant. She didn't defend herself. When she walked out of the Hawk estate, she only had one suitcase. Never looked back."
The grandfather clock completed a rotation.
"She changed her last name. To Kendall. Just picked it at random."
The line of Evelyn's jaw went rigid.
She didn't speak.
She was waiting.
Richard looked down at his hands on his knees.
"Frederick and I were close friends when we were young. After your mother was thrown out of the Hawk family, someone quietly told me the whole story. I confronted your grandmother... she didn't deny it."
His voice dropped very low after that sentence.