Chapter 2
Richard's funeral was simple.
There was no money for anything more.
Julian told me the company had been bleeding for a long time, and the bank accounts had already been frozen.
That three million in savings had never existed.
As for the three properties, they had all been mortgaged to the bank long ago.
The will was nothing but a lie.
A piece of paper meant to keep this "good daughter" paying out of her own pocket.
I stood in front of the memorial, looking at the black-and-white photo.
Richard in the picture was smiling, gentle, and refined.
No one would have guessed he was a man who calculated every move against his own daughter.
The room was sparse, almost empty.
His business associates were nowhere to be seen.
Instead, a few distant relatives showed up, people I barely recognized, dabbing at their eyes in front of the photo.
Then they drifted over to me, offering comfort that sounded more like probing.
"Claire, how did your father pass so suddenly?"
"Yeah, I heard the medical bills were pretty high, right?"
"How much did he leave you?"
I kept my face blank and said nothing.
I had seen this kind of behavior far too many times.
Just then, a commotion rose at the entrance to the hall.
Lucas had arrived with his mother, Evelyn Grant.
They were both dressed in black, but there was no real grief on their faces.
Evelyn was well maintained, looking barely in her early forties, still elegant.
Lucas resembled her, pale and mild-looking.
The moment they walked in, they headed straight for me.
"Claire!"
Lucas' eyes were red, whether from crying or anger, it was hard to tell.
He grabbed my collar, teeth clenched. "Why didn't you save Dad? Why?"
Behind him, Evelyn started wailing.
"My poor Richard, how could you leave us like this!"
Then she turned on me. "You heartless girl! You wouldn't even save your own father! Are you made of stone?"
Her shrill cries drew everyone over.
I watched their performance without expression.
"He was already brain-dead. There was no saving him."
My voice was quiet, but clear.
Lucas froze for a moment, then his anger flared even higher.
"That's a lie! The doctor said there was still hope if treatment continued!"
He pointed at me. "You did this. You gave up on him to save money!"
Evelyn jumped in, turning to the relatives around us.
"Everyone, tell me if this is right. What kind of daughter does this?
"Richard worked so hard to raise her, and this is how she repays him!
"For the sake of a hundred thousand in medical bills, she let her own father die! Is that something a human being would do?"
Whispers rippled through the room.
The looks they gave me were full of disdain and accusation.
"What an ungrateful child."
"She could do this to her own father, that's cold."
"You never really know a person."
I listened to it all without any reaction.
Then I reached into my bag and took out a slip of paper.
It was the hospital bill.
I held it out to Lucas.
"You said money wasn't an issue."
"Good. Here's the hundred thousand we owe the hospital. Go pay it."
Lucas stared at the bill and fell silent.
Evelyn's crying cut off mid-sob.
She snatched the paper, took one look, and shrieked.
"A hundred thousand? How can it be this much?
"Is this hospital trying to rob people?"
I answered evenly, "The ICU costs twenty thousand a day. That was just two days, plus the emergency treatments. A hundred thousand was already on the low side."
I paused, letting my gaze move over the two of them.
"The funeral, cremation, the burial plot, that's another hundred thousand.
"You're his beloved and his dutiful son. It's only right that you pay."
Evelyn's face turned ugly.
"Why should we pay? You're his daughter. Taking care of him to the end was your responsibility!"
"Exactly!" Lucas snapped back to himself. "Didn't Dad leave you his estate? Use that to pay!"
The estate?
I laughed.
"What estate?"
I took out a copy of the will and dropped it on the table.
"The three properties that were all mortgaged? Or the two companies that had already gone under?
"Or maybe the three million that had never even existed?"
I looked at them as they stood there, stunned, and spoke slowly, one word at a time.
"Richard didn't leave a single cent. Just a pile of debt.
"The hundred thousand in medical bills, and another hundred thousand for the funeral, are you paying or not?"
The relatives around us fell silent.
No one had expected things to turn out like this.
Evelyn's face shifted from red to pale, then to a sickly green.
She pointed at me, her hand trembling.
"That's a lie! How could Richard have no money?
"He promised me everything would go to Lucas!
"It must be you. You must have moved the money!"
I let out a cold laugh.
"Then go check for yourself.
"See if there's a single cent left under Richard's name.
"And while you're at it, here's a reminder, he still owes the bank more than a million."
I looked straight at Lucas. "As the heir to his 'estate,' are you going to take on that debt?"
Lucas' face drained of color.
He stumbled back a step, as if he had just heard something absurd.
The hall fell completely silent.
The people who had just been accusing me now had nothing to say.
At that moment, Julian walked in.
He came straight over, his expression complicated.
"Ms. Newton, there's something I need to discuss with you.
"It's about Mr. Newton's shares in the company."