Chapter 7 - The Forensic Attorney
At 9:00 AM, I sat inside a high-rise office suite on Louisiana Street in downtown Houston.
Marcus Vance—my late father's estranged older brother and a legendary federal prosecutor turned defense attorney—sat across from me.
He listened in total silence as I played the audio recording of Victoria boasting about the drugged groom and the forged prenup.
Marcus's jaw tightened with every passing second, his dark eyes flashing with a dangerous, lethal intelligence.
"That arrogant, greedy snake," Marcus muttered, slamming his pen down onto the glass desk.
"Victoria thought she could destroy my brother's legacy and steal his daughter's inheritance while the ink on the death certificate was still wet."
He leaned forward, pulling out a thick manila folder labeled Vance Corporation Financial Audits.
"What Victoria doesn't know, Elena, is that your father called me two weeks before he died," Marcus revealed softly.
"He suspected Julian and Victoria were setting up a fraudulent land scheme using his engineering firm."
"He gave me full access to his private bank accounts and instructed me to act as your co-trustee if anything ever happened to him."
Tears finally welled in my eyes as I realized my father had been trying to protect me all along.
"Is the prenuptial addendum legally binding, Uncle Marcus?" I asked, wiping my cheek.
Marcus smiled a dark, fierce smile that sent a surge of pure hope rushing through my veins.
"That forged document isn't worth the paper it's printed on, Elena," Marcus declared.
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"By drugging Julian and forging your signature, Victoria didn't just commit civil fraud..."
"She committed multiple federal felonies."
