Chapter 8 - LILY’S THIRTY PERCENT
Rachel’s will left her residual estate to Lily.
That part I knew.
What I didn’t know was that an undisclosed company interest could still fall into that estate.
Susan explained carefully.
“If the ownership was valid and remained in Rachel’s name at death, it may need to be administered now.”
“So Lily owns thirty percent of my mother’s house?”
“Not that simply. Rachel’s estate may hold an interest in the LLC, subject to the operating agreement.”
“But Lily is the beneficiary.”
“Yes.”
“How much is thirty percent worth?”
“We need valuation.”
The house alone was worth close to $1.6 million.
The two duplexes added more.
After debt, Rachel’s interest could be worth hundreds of thousands.
Possibly over half a million.
Tessa would know that.
Margaret definitely knew.
And Lily stood to inherit it.
I thought about my sister laughing in Lily’s face.
She deserved it.
What had a four-year-old done to deserve bruises?
Maybe nothing.
Maybe Tessa wasn’t punishing Lily for behavior.
Maybe she was punishing Rachel through her daughter.
Then another thought appeared.
“Can Margaret sell the house?”
Susan shook her head.
“Not without dealing with the LLC structure and ownership issues.”
“Could she mortgage it?”
“Potentially depending on authority, but undisclosed ownership disputes create complications.”
That mattered because Margaret had recently announced plans to refinance and remodel.
I remembered her complaining about paperwork delays.
Maybe Rachel’s missing share had become inconvenient.
David called that evening.
“Tessa wants to talk.”
“To me?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“She says she can explain the box.”
I wanted to refuse.
Instead, I arranged to meet with Susan present.
No private family ambush.
No backyard.
No wine.
Tessa arrived without Margaret.
Her cheek still carried a faint mark from where I slapped her.
I did not apologize.
She sat across from me.
“You made me look like a monster.”
“You bruised a four-year-old.”
“She wouldn’t stop screaming.”
“That doesn’t answer anything.”
Tessa’s jaw tightened.
“I was trying to get the box away from her.”
“Why?”
“She grabbed something.”
“What?”
Tessa looked at Susan.
Then at me.
“A photograph.”
“Of?”
She hesitated.
“Dad.”
My father.
I stared.
“With Rachel.”
That alone wasn't strange.
They knew each other.
But Tessa looked frightened saying it.
“What was happening in the photograph?”
“She was signing something.”
“What?”
“I couldn’t see.”
“You hurt Lily over a photograph you couldn’t understand?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
Tessa swallowed.
“Because of who else was in it.”
That opened another door.
May you like
Rachel’s undisclosed Cedar Ridge interest meant Lily was potentially entitled to a significant share of the family company, giving Margaret a concrete reason to fear the old records resurfacing.
In Chapter 9, Tessa finally identified the third person in Rachel’s photograph—and that person connected the hidden company records to a document everyone believed had been destroyed.
