Chapter 17 - LENORA EXPLAINS HERSELF
Her formal statement came during civil discovery related to the book and event expenses.
She did not apologize at first.
She explained.
“I was raised to understand that family history is blood history.”
True.
Her father, my great-grandfather’s son, kept handwritten genealogy charts.
Biological lines only.
Spouses in pencil.
Adoptions marked separately.
Lenora inherited the archive.
Then:
“Dominic had no natural child.”
Natural.
My attorney corrected:
“Biological.”
Lenora bristled.
Fine.
Then:
“Why did that matter?”
“Because the Avery name has continuity.”
“Does Elsie carry the Avery name?”
“Yes.”
“Legally Dominic’s daughter?”
“Yes.”
“Then?”
Lenora looked angry.
“Law can call anything anything.”
There.
The ideology.
Then:
“Did you believe Gideon would inherit Dominic’s business?”
“No.”
“Estate?”
“No.”
“House?”
“No.”
“Then what did real blood give Gideon?”
Lenora’s answer came quickly.
“Standing.”
There.
Not money.
Standing.
Who speaks.
Who represents.
Who gets seated beside the central figure in a portrait.
Who looks inevitable.
Then the most important question.
“Why physically remove Elsie?”
Lenora looked down.
“Because Dominic had refused to listen.”
The same logic every controlling adult eventually reaches.
I asked politely.
They refused.
May you like
So force became justified.
No.
