Elena opened the black folder and pulled out a second tab.
‘Before anyone says another careless thing,’ she said, ‘you should know Bradley anticipated a challenge.
He left signed copies of prior demand letters regarding unauthorized use of his name, evidence of attempted access to his accounts, and surveillance stills from an earlier visit to this property during his hospitalization.’
Declan went pale.
That was when I knew.
Bradley hadn’t just expected them to come.
He had anticipated exactly who would touch what.
Elena placed three still images on the dining table.
In the first, Declan stood in Bradley’s study during the week of his hospitalization, one hand inside a drawer.
In the second, Fiona held a folder open beneath the desk lamp.
In the third, Marjorie used her key at the door while glancing over her shoulder.
No one spoke.
Even Deputy Collins seemed impressed.
‘He installed interior cameras after a prior incident,’ Elena said.
‘Those files are backed up offsite.’
Marjorie’s mouth opened, then closed.
Finally, she said the only thing people like her say when certainty slips.
‘He wouldn’t do this to family.’
I almost answered.
Elena spoke first.
‘He did exactly this to family,’ she said.
‘Because of what family repeatedly did to him.’
From the folder, she withdrew one last item: a sealed envelope in Bradley’s handwriting.
My name was written on the front.
Elena handed it to me.
‘He asked that you read this only if they came into the condo after his death,’ she said.
My hands trembled as I opened it.
Inside was a single sheet of paper.
