Chapter 1 - The Burned Key
I stared at the melted plastic tag inside the evidence bag, my mind struggling to process the impossible reality.
My mother had secretly duplicated my apartment key just six days before the fire.
Investigator Reyes watched me closely, his dark eyes analyzing every single shift in my expression.
He asked me if my mother had any financial motive to destroy my property.
I swallowed hard and explained the bitter dispute over my late grandmother’s massive inheritance.
My grandmother had left her entire estate to me, completely bypassing my parents and my brother.
Reyes wrote something on his notepad and told me I was officially a person of interest.
He warned me not to leave the city without notifying him first.
I wrapped a borrowed blanket around my shoulders and walked to a cheap motel down the street.
The smell of smoke clung to my skin as I sat on the edge of the lumpy mattress.
I pulled out my phone and logged into my mobile banking app to check my emergency funds.
The screen loaded slowly in the dim light of the motel room.
When the balance finally appeared, my breath caught violently in my throat.
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The entire inheritance account was completely empty.
Someone had just withdrawn two million dollars exactly five minutes before the fire started.
