Chapter 3 - The Phantom Will
"This is a preposterous stunt!" Victoria shouted, finally breaking her composure. She descended the stairs, her silk gown rustling like a snake in the grass. "Someone hired this child. This is corporate espionage! Harrison's watch was stolen years ago!"
Before the guards could advance again, a sharp voice cut through the chaos. "Stop right there."
Elias Caldwell, the Vance family’s oldest and most ruthless attorney, stepped out of the crowd. He was a man who lived and breathed legal contracts, and he was the only person in the room Victoria actually feared. Caldwell adjusted his wire-rimmed glasses and walked slowly toward Julian.
He didn't look at the dirt. He didn't look at the rags. He looked straight at the watch, and then, at the boy's eyes.
"May I?" Caldwell asked, holding out his hand.
Julian, maintaining unbroken eye contact, handed the heavy silver piece over. Caldwell clicked a hidden button on the side of the watch. A secret compartment sprang open. Inside was a tiny, tightly rolled piece of parchment, and a small, uniquely jagged bronze key.
Caldwell unrolled the parchment. The entire room held its breath.
"This is Harrison's handwriting," Caldwell announced, his voice booming with legal finality. "And his thumbprint in wax. It states, unequivocally, that the reading of his final will—the true will—cannot proceed unless the bearer of this key is present."
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"That's impossible!" Victoria screeched, dropping her poised demeanor entirely. "I have his final will! He left everything to me! He signed it in the hospital!"
"He signed a decoy, Victoria," Caldwell replied coldly. He looked down at Julian. "Welcome home, Mr. Vance. It appears we have a vault to open."
