I buried my husband and our six-year-old daughter alone while my parents and brother raised champagne glasses on a sunny beach, claiming their vacation “couldn’t be canceled for a funeral.

"Felonies?" my father sputtered, his face turning a dangerous shade of purple. "That is slander! We built that boy! We introduced him to the right people!"

"You extorted him," Mr. Sterling corrected coldly. "And because those contracts were signed under duress and fraudulent pretenses, they are null and void. Furthermore, because you used your own private estate as collateral against those fraudulent loans..."

Mr. Sterling slid three envelopes across the table.

"Elena is officially seizing your assets. The family home, the investment portfolios, and Julian's startup fund. They now belong to Vance & Brooks Innovations to cover the stolen funds."

Julian leaped out of his chair. "She can't do that! That's illegal! I'll destroy her!"

I pressed the button on my microphone, my voice filling the conference room through the overhead speakers. "It's perfectly legal, Julian. I drafted the counter-clauses myself three years ago. Thomas signed them. You were too arrogant to read the fine print."