Chapter 3 - The Alliance
I checked into a discreet boutique hotel downtown before dialing the one number Ethan never expected me to call: Arthur Pendelton, the senior partner at Pendelton & Associates and the Vance family’s lifelong legal counsel.
Arthur picked up on the second ring. "Mrs. Vance? Is everything alright?"
"Call me Maya, Arthur," I said, my voice steady. "And no, everything is not alright. Ethan served me divorce papers. I need you to represent me—and I need you to pull the file on Eleanor Vance’s final will."
There was a heavy pause on the other end of the line. When Arthur spoke again, his voice carried a strange, solemn weight. "I was wondering when you would call, Maya. Come to my office tomorrow morning at nine. Bring Ethan’s divorce settlement, and bring the safety deposit box key Eleanor gave you."
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"Why the key?" I asked.
"Because," Arthur replied quietly, "your late mother-in-law left instructions that can only be unlocked with that exact key in my presence. Ethan is about to find out that empires built on arrogance always crumble from the foundation."
