Chapter 6 - The Father's Will
Twenty minutes later, the lawn was empty. The guests had fled, the police cars had pulled away, and the quiet autumn wind hummed softly through the oak trees.
Agent Vance walked up to the porch of the groundskeeper's cottage, where Maya and I were sitting on the wooden steps.
"The search teams are inside the main house right now, Grace," Marcus said, handing me a sealed leather binder. "We found Arthur's real original will inside the hidden wall safe in his study. The one he drafted three years ago before his health declined."
I opened the binder. My father's familiar, elegant handwriting covered the first page.
“To my beloved daughter, Grace Kahn, who served her country in silence while I sat in comfort. I leave the entirety of the Kahn Family Trust, the estate, and all corporate shares, knowing she possesses the strength, wisdom, and iron heart necessary to protect our legacy from those who seek to consume it.”
A quiet tear escaped my eye, tracing down my cheek before I wiped it away with the back of my hand.
"He knew, didn't he?" Maya asked softly, leaning her head against my shoulder. "Grandpa knew what they were trying to do."
"He knew," I murmured, wrapping my arm around her. "He just needed time for his soldier to come home."
"What happens to the estate now, Major?" Marcus asked, leaning against the porch railing. "The federal government is liquidating Estelle's seized assets to pay back the embezzled funds. Once the legal dust clears, this entire property belongs exclusively to you and Maya."
May you like
I looked across the vast, rolling lawn toward the grand brick manor. For six months, it had felt like a fortress of greed and cruelty. But looking at it now, without Estelle's lingering shadow, I saw what it truly was—my father's home.
"We keep it," I said firmly. "And the first thing we do is tear down that eighty-thousand-dollar glass greenhouse."
