Thora quietly tried to sit in an empty chair after serving food to the dinner guests

"Are you insane?!" shouted a tall man from the far end of the table, his face flushed red with indignation. It was Richard, Heloise’s older brother and Clara’s father. He stepped forward, pointing a trembling finger at Aldric. "You just assaulted my sister in front of twenty witnesses! I'm calling the police!"

Aldric slowly turned his head. His eyes locked onto Richard with a gaze so lethal it stopped the man dead in his tracks.

"Call them," Aldric commanded, his voice echoing off the vaulted ceiling. "Call the police, Richard. Tell them to bring the child services unit. We can show them the bruises on my five-year-old daughter's face. We can show them the dog blanket she was forced to sleep on while your daughter slept in her bed."

Richard swallowed hard, his hand hovering over his phone. The color drained from his rosy cheeks as he looked at Thora, who was peeking out from behind her father’s legs, her bruised face undeniable proof of the abuse.

"She... she was just disciplining the girl," Richard stammered, his American accent losing its confident edge. "It was a misunderstanding. You didn't have to break her jaw!"

"You ate my food," Aldric said, taking a slow, measured step toward Richard. "You drank my wine. You sat at this table and watched that woman strike a child, and you said nothing. You are a coward, Richard. And cowards do not get to dictate terms in my house."

"It's her house too!" Richard protested weakly, backing toward the exit. "She has the deed! She has the legal right to half of everything!"

Aldric let out a dark, humorless chuckle that sent a chill down the spine of every guest in the room. He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a slim, encrypted smartphone.

"You think your sister is a legal mastermind?" Aldric asked, tapping the screen of his device. "Heloise filed the deed modification last Tuesday. But she forgot to check the primary articles of incorporation for the family holding company."

Heloise moaned from the floor, spitting blood onto the hardwood. "What... what are you talking about?"

"I built this empire, Heloise," Aldric said, staring down at her ruined face. "I don't leave my back door unlocked. Any alteration to the estate's ownership requires the signature of the primary trustee."

"I forged your signature!" Heloise shrieked hysterically, the pain in her face overridden by the terror of losing her prize. "My lawyers verified it! It's ironclad!"

"You forged the signature of Aldric Vance," he corrected her softly. "But the estate isn't owned by Aldric Vance. It’s owned by the Thora Vanguard Trust. An irrevocable trust established on the day she was born, completely shielded from marital assets."

Heloise’s eyes widened in sheer, absolute horror. The blood running down her chin mixed with her tears as the realization crashed down upon her. She didn't own half the estate. She owned absolutely nothing.