Chapter 14 - THE MONEY THAT BELONGED TO LEO
I couldn’t understand.
Leo’s account.
How?
Why?
Daniel explained everything in the car.
“When Leo was born, your grandmother created a small investment account for him.”
I looked out the window.
“I didn’t know.”
“She kept it private.”
“How much?”
Daniel hesitated.
“That’s the problem.”
“What?”
“It grew over time.”
My heart sank.
“How much?”
He looked at me.
“Enough that Julian noticed.”
I closed my eyes.
Of course.
Everything came back to money.
Even my son.
Even his future.
Even his name.
“How did he access it?”
Daniel opened the file.
“Using the same methods.”
“Forgery.”
“Yes.”
My hands trembled.
“He stole from our child.”
Daniel didn’t answer.
Because there was no defense.
No explanation.
No excuse.
When we arrived at the bank, the manager was waiting.
“Mrs. Sterling.”
“Tell me what happened.”
He looked uncomfortable.
“Mr. Sterling attempted to make changes to the account.”
“Did he succeed?”
“No.”
I exhaled.
A small relief.
“Why not?”
The manager looked at the documents.
“Because your grandmother placed restrictions.”
“What restrictions?”
“That only Leo’s legal guardian could make changes.”
My heart stopped.
“Legal guardian?”
“Yes.”
“Who is listed?”
He looked at the paper.
Then:
“You.”
A wave of emotion hit me.
My grandmother protected him.
Even after she was gone.
She protected my baby.
I touched the document.
And tears filled my eyes.
“Thank you.”
The manager nodded.
“But there’s something else.”
I looked up.
“What?”
“He wasn’t only trying to access the money.”
“What else?”
“He requested medical information connected to the account.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
The manager handed me another paper.
At the bottom was a request note.
I read it.
And my blood ran cold.
“Proof of genetic history.”
I looked at Daniel.
“Why would he need that?”
Daniel didn’t answer immediately.
Then he said:
“He wasn’t trying to understand Leo.”
“He was building something.”
“What?”
“A defense.”
I stared at him.
“A defense against what?”
Daniel looked at me.
“Against being blamed.”
The realization hit.
Julian wasn’t just stealing.
He was preparing for consequences.
He knew something might come out.
Something about Leo.
Something about him.
That night, I returned home.
The house was quiet.
For the first time in months, I walked through the rooms without fear.
I went upstairs.
To Leo’s room.
The room was still empty.
But it didn’t feel empty anymore.
Because I knew something.
My son had been loved.
By me.
By my grandmother.
By the people who mattered.
Then I saw something on the floor.
A small envelope.
Hidden behind the closet.
My name was written on it.
“Clara.”
My hands started shaking.
I opened it.
Inside was a letter.
My grandmother’s handwriting.
A letter I had never seen.
The first sentence made me cry.
“My dear Clara, if you are reading this, something has happened that I hoped would never happen.”
I sat down.
And kept reading.
The final line said:
“Never trust a man who loves what you own more than who you are.”
I stopped.
Because my grandmother knew.
May you like
Somehow…
She knew.
