Chapter 3 — The Paper Trail
Within thirty minutes, the grand ballroom was cleared, the guests dismissed into the rainy Manhattan night under a strict corporate non-disclosure mandate. The only people left inside the massive space were Edward, Lily, Julian Vance, and James Harlow—Edward's chief of security.
Victoria had already been detained in the estate's private library, guarded by two off-duty police officers while federal authorities were routed to the property.
"The political family Julian mentioned," James Harlow said, placing a modern tablet onto the grand piano beside Lily. "We just ran the serial numbers from the secondary birth registry Julian provided. The timeline matches perfectly. The boy was raised under the name Leo Vance."
Edward’s breath hitched. "Leo Vance? The young assistant district attorney who has been building the federal fraud case against Victoria's shell companies for the last six months?"
"The very same," Julian nodded grimly, resting his cane against a velvet chair.
"He didn't know he was investigating his biological aunt, Edward. He thought he was just doing his job, tracking the illicit capital flowing out of the Sterling Trust. But blood has a way of hunting the truth. He's been looking for the source of his own closed adoption records for five years. Victoria knew he was getting close. That’s why she tried to rush the asset liquidation tonight."
Lily reached out, her small, thin hand touching the glowing screen of the tablet. On it was a photograph of a twenty-year-old man with sharp gray eyes, a determined jaw, and the exact same crescent-shaped birthmark on his left wrist that Lily carried on her own.
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"He looks like Mommy," Lily whispered, a tear dropping onto the glass screen. "He has the same smile from the little picture in my necklace."
Edward knelt beside his granddaughter, wrapping his long arms around her. "He does, sweetheart. And tomorrow morning, we are going to bring him home. James, coordinate with the federal prosecutors. I want Leo Vance in my office at sunrise. Do not tell him why. Just tell him the Sterling case has completely changed."
