CHAPTER 2 — THE BROTHER WHO BOUGHT THE TRUTH
Three days later...
Emily received an anonymous package.
No return address.
Inside...
Only one photograph.
It showed Michael shaking hands with Attorney Charles Hawthorne in the parking garage beneath the law firm.
A timestamp.
11:47 p.m.
The night after the funeral.
On the back of the photo...
Someone had written:
"Trust no one. They changed the documents."
Emily's hands trembled.
She immediately called Charles.
No answer.
She called again.
His phone had been disconnected.
That afternoon...
Breaking news hit every financial channel.
Whitmore Industries announced an emergency board meeting.
Michael stood before dozens of cameras.
"My sister is emotionally overwhelmed."
"I've asked the court to suspend her control of the company until a competency evaluation is completed."
Emily stared at the television in disbelief.
He wasn't fighting for the company anymore.
He was trying to prove she was mentally unstable.
Within twenty-four hours...
Anonymous articles appeared online.
"Emily Whitmore Treated for Depression."
"Questions About Heir's Mental Health."
"Can She Lead a Fortune 500 Company?"
Every story cited unnamed sources.
Every rumor spread faster than the truth.
Even Daniel began doubting her.
"Emily..."
"Tell me honestly."
"Did Dad really choose you?"
She looked at him with tears in her eyes.
"I've asked myself the same question every day."
Then her phone buzzed.
Unknown Number.
A single message.
"Your father knew this would happen."
Attached was a GPS location.
An abandoned storage warehouse outside Boston Harbor.
Against everyone's advice...
Emily went alone.
Inside the dark warehouse...
She found an old steel safe.
The code?
Her birthday.
Inside were dozens of folders.
Company records.
Bank transfers.
Audio recordings.
And one sealed envelope labeled...
FOR EMILY ONLY.
She opened it.
Her father's handwriting covered the first page.
"If Michael is attacking you..."
"Then he has already done exactly what I feared."
Emily froze.
There was also a flash drive.
She inserted it into her laptop.
A hidden security recording appeared.
Michael.
Attorney Charles.
Stacks of replacement documents.
Charles whispered...
"No one will ever know the original will existed."
Michael smiled.
"They don't need the original."
"They only need to believe the lie."
Emily stopped breathing.
Because just as the recording ended...
Another file automatically opened.
Its title made her blood run cold.
PROJECT BLACK OAK
Father had not simply anticipated betrayal.
He had spent five years preparing for it.
May you like
And someone inside the family...
Had been secretly helping him.
