Chapter 2: The Trojan Horse
Evelyn prided herself on her intellect. She had hired the perfect tutor for Leo—a quiet, unassuming man named Mr. Thorne. She thought Thorne was a pushover, someone who would keep the boy occupied while she moved millions from the Blackwood trust into her private offshore accounts. She hired him because he was cheap and seemed invisible.
She never bothered to run a deep background check because she didn't care about the boy’s education. She only cared that he was out of her hair.
But on a Tuesday evening, as Evelyn hosted a high-stakes dinner for her corporate associates, the atmosphere in the mansion shifted. The front doors didn't open with a knock; they swung wide with a heavy, deliberate force.
A man walked into the foyer. He wasn't Mr. Thorne, the tutor. He was Julian Blackwood—Leo’s uncle, the man Evelyn had spent three years telling the press and the probate court had died in a climbing accident in the Andes.
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Evelyn’s wine glass shattered on the floor. Her face, usually composed, turned the color of ash. "You..." she whispered, her voice barely a breath.
"The Andes are beautiful this time of year," Julian said, his voice cold, steady, and terrifyingly calm. "But they aren't nearly as cold as what you’ve been doing to my nephew."
