My father had been in the ground less than three hours when my brother-in-law stood in the center of the drawing room and announced that his wife was inheriting it all.

I held the ledger tightly against my chest. “Actually, Richard, you’re the one trespassing. This penthouse is owned by the company. And as of this morning, Harrison filed the injunction freezing your executive access.”

“An injunction takes days to enforce,” Richard sneered, motioning to his guards. “Take the book from her.”

Before the guards could take a step, Alexander moved. He didn't shout or posture. He simply stepped in front of me, unbuttoning his suit jacket to reveal the heavy, dark grip of a legally carried sidearm holstered at his waist.

“I spent ten years in private security before my corporate career, Richard,” Alexander said softly. “If these men take one step toward my sister, I will consider it a threat to her life. Are you paying them enough to take a bullet for your tax fraud?”

The guards stopped dead. They looked at Alexander, then at Richard. One of them slowly backed away. “We’re paid to bounce people, Mr. Vance. Not catch felonies.”

Richard’s face flushed purple as his hired muscle abandoned him.

“This isn't over,” Richard spat, pointing a trembling finger at us. “We have board members in our pocket. We will call an emergency vote and liquidate the company before you can even claim the shares.”

“Let them try,” Alexander said as Richard stormed out.

When we returned to the manor, Harrison was waiting with grim news. Richard wasn't bluffing. Victoria had spent the last two days calling every major shareholder in the logistics firm, spinning a web of lies. She claimed I was colluding with a con artist—Alexander—to steal the company, and that Dad had been suffering from dementia when he made the video.

“She has called an emergency shareholder meeting for Friday,” Harrison said. “She’s pushing for a vote of no confidence to force a sale of the company to a private equity firm. A firm, I might add, that Richard secretly has a stake in.”