Chapter 2: Two Taps for Yes
Gabriel slipped a small notepad and pen onto the mattress beside Matthew's hand.
"Two taps for yes.
One tap for no.
Can you do that?"
Two slow, deliberate taps.
"Does Lucy know anything about the power-of-attorney documents?"
One tap.
Gabriel exhaled.
"That's what I was afraid of."
He pulled his phone from his coat pocket and held the screen close to Matthew's face.
It was a photograph — Beatriz and Alvin, seated together at a restaurant Matthew had never been to, her hand resting on top of his.
The timestamp in the corner read fourteen months ago.
Three months before the crash.
Matthew tapped twice.
Hard.
"There's something else," Gabriel said, his voice dropping even lower.
"The buyer for the Aspen property isn't a stranger either.
It's a shell company.
And the registered agent on the filing?" He paused.
"It's Lucy's name.
Forged.
If this deal closes Friday, your daughter doesn't just lose her inheritance — she becomes legally liable for the entire transaction."
Matthew's finger trembled against the mattress.
Then they both heard it.
Heels on the staircase.
Coming back up.
Gabriel straightened, slipped the phone into his pocket, and picked up his stethoscope in one smooth motion.
The bedroom door swung open.
Beatriz stood in the doorway, her eyes moving slowly from Gabriel to Matthew and back again.
"Is everything alright in here?"
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What Beatriz saw on Matthew's face in that moment set everything in motion.
Click the link below to read the full story — and find out if Lucy makes it in time.
