Chapter 10
The man in the dark coat stands alone, posture careful, eyes sharp, like someone who has learned how to deliver bad news without emotion.
“Michelle Carter,” he says. “I have a message from your grandfather.”
Her chest tightens.
“He’s dead,” she says.
The man nods.
“So is your mother,” he replies. “That didn’t stop the decision.”
Inside, he doesn’t sit.
He doesn’t relax.
He speaks quickly.
“The fortune was conditional,” he says. “Your mother was given the same choice you were.”
Michelle swallows.
“She chose you,” the man continues. “And that is why she died.”
The revelation hits like a physical blow.
Saxton appears in the doorway, listening.
Too calm.
Too ready.
The man looks between them.
“You have thirty days,” he says. “Give it all away, or the inheritance ends the way it always does.”
“How?” Michelle asks.
The man meets her gaze.
“Blood,” he says simply.
Then he leaves.
Saxton laughs once the door closes.
“Well,” he says. “Guess we run.”
Michelle doesn’t laugh.
She realizes the choice isn’t abstract anymore.
It’s immediate.
