Chapter 14 - The Final Truth
I stopped five paces away from her, taking a deep, slow breath to center myself.
"Because Anna knew you'd come here, Claire," I said quietly.
Claire froze, her finger hovering an inch above the glass screen.
"What are you talking about?" she asked, a crack of doubt finally appearing in her hostile stance.
I pulled out my phone and played a short audio recording from Anna’s secondary drive.
Anna's voice filled the foggy courtyard, warm, gentle, and overflowing with quiet wisdom.
"Claire, if you're listening to this, it means you've let your father consume your life just like he consumed Evelyn's."
"You don't have to carry their sins. The account you're trying to drain isn't money."
"It's a full legal pardon file I created for you three years ago, before I died."
Claire stared at the tablet screen as lines of green code suddenly overrode her transfer screen.
The screen displayed a federal immunity agreement signed by Marcus Vance, framed under Claire’s full legal name.
Anna had foreseen Claire’s entrapment in her family's criminal enterprise and had built an escape hatch for her.
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Tears welled up in Claire’s eyes, spilling over her pale cheeks as the tablet slipped from her trembling fingers.
The tablet shattered against the brick pavement with a loud snap.
