Chapter 7 - THE MAN INSIDE MY FAMILY
At 3:27 a.m., Uncle Adrian called me.
“You’re overreacting.”
I almost laughed.
“That seems popular tonight.”
“Julian made mistakes.”
“He forged my signature.”
“Allegedly.”
“You sound like his lawyer.”
Silence.
Then Adrian sighed.
“Your father kept you sheltered.”
“From what?”
“From how this family actually works.”
He claimed Laurent Heritage had survived by making ugly compromises.
He claimed Julian was ambitious but useful.
He claimed I was risking thousands of jobs because my feelings were hurt.
That line did it.
“My feelings?”
“Elena—”
“He stole my grandmother’s pendant.”
“That’s personal.”
“He tried to transfer my home.”
“Also personal.”
“He tried to move family collateral.”
Adrian stopped.
“You don’t understand that transaction.”
“Then explain it.”
He did not.
Instead he said.
“If you push this further, your father loses more than Julian.”
The call ended.
I turned to Dad.
He had heard everything.
His face had changed.
“What does he mean?”
Dad walked to the window.
“There is something I never told you.”
Before he could continue, Miriam rushed in.
“We have a problem.”
Laurent Heritage Bank had frozen a $180 million revolving facility.
Every resort depended on it for seasonal liquidity.
Payroll in five countries could be affected.
May you like
Julian had left me a poisoned empire.
