Chapter 49 - The Siege Begins
Victor didn't wait the full forty-eight hours to start the bleeding. The siege began the very next morning.
At 6:00 AM, a massive construction barricade was erected directly in front of the diner by a city crew, completely blocking our entrance from the street. They claimed it was a "mandatory emergency sewage check," ordered by the new property management company.
By noon, our primary food suppliers called, one by one, issuing hollow apologies as they canceled our accounts. Victor had bought their loyalty or threatened their margins.
The diner was empty, the fresh food spoiling in the walk-in fridge, the silence suffocating.
David paced the floor, his fists clenched. "I can tear down those barricades, Evelyn. I can rip them out of the concrete."
"No," I commanded, staring out the window at the chain-link fence separating us from the street. "That’s what he wants. He wants us to look erratic and violent for the custody hearing. We play this smart."
Hannah walked out of the kitchen, wearing her apron like armor. She didn't look defeated. She looked exactly like me.
"Mom," Hannah said, her voice steady and chillingly calm. "When we cleared out the mansion five years ago, you kept a digital archive of his brother's offshore accounts. The ones we used to put him in prison."
"Yes," I nodded. "But Victor’s name wasn't on those ledgers. He was entirely insulated."
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"But they shared an accountant," Hannah pointed out, her eyes flashing with a brilliant, ruthless intelligence. "Julian Vance. The man who handled the trust. If Victor is activating the trust now, Vance must have the keys. We don't attack Victor. We break the accountant."
I smiled, a fierce, predatory grin. The generational curse was dead, but the generational strength was terrifyingly alive.
