“That is a possibility, yes, but as long as your brothers won’t press charges and the victim is dead, I wouldn’t worry about that.”
“But we still need evidence, and we don’t have any.”
“True. And how would you go about solving such a complicated situation for a client?”
Benji sounded like one of Chris’s old professors, but his question was solid, forcing Chris to gather his thoughts. “Give me a moment.”
They would need to make it look like Chris had been in contact with Robert in recent years and had somehow made him leave the family’s fortune solely to him. That could have happened for two reasons: firstly, Robert had loved Chris more than his biological children, which would be almost impossible to prove or disprove. The second reason could be that Robert had been afraid of Chris—afraid enough to take such drastic action.
Why would he be afraid of me?
The answer was so close to the truth, it was hidden in plain sight all along.
“He molested me,” Chris blurted. “He molested me, and I threatened to tell and destroy him if he wouldn’t leave me all his money.”
“Hmm, thatisa solid reason to pressure a man into changing his will.”
Chris got the feeling that Benji had been thinking the same thing, hoping that Chris would arrive to the same conclusion on his own.
“Now, let’s talk evidence,” Benji said.
“I was hospitalized twice, at sixteen and seventeen.” Both times had been due to Andy’s carelessness with his twisted games. By that point, Chris had already lost hope of escaping the Mitchells, so he rolled withwhichever lies they chose to tell the hospital staff.
“Were those two cases connected to sexual assault in any way?”
“No, but it’s better than nothing. We can also fake an old letter where I accused Robert of molesting me and threatened to expose him. An email would be harder to fake with an older date.”
“A letter would help, yes. Anything else?”
The wheels in Chris’s head spun fast enough to make him dizzy. “We can get Trevor and Andy to testify that they knew what was going on between Robert and me. No—I wouldn’t trust Andy to testify—so just Trevor. And you can also say that Robert seemed hesitant when he came to you to change his will; not enough for you to refuse, but enough to raise suspicion. And I... I can testify that I blackmailed him.”
His heart pounded. If word of this were to reach the wrong people, he may as well resign now. But losing his career felt insignificant with his life on the line. He also trusted Mickey to have his back if it came to that.
“We’ll have you testify as a last resort,” Benji said, “but yes, it will undoubtedly be our strongest proof.” He sighed. “Such a mess this has turned out to be. When Robert came to me with his updated will last year, I insisted he’d tell me what caused such a change. I knew he was disappointed with his children, mostly with Trevor, but he hadn’t mentioned you in years. He refused to explain his reasons, simply said that he wasgoing to make things right and get even with those who deserved it.”
“I don’t deserve any of this.”
“I know you don’t. I can tell you are a good man.”
“Thank you. When did you last speak with Robert about the will?”
“About a week or so before his passing. We talked about different things regarding his business, and he mentioned the will. I asked if he would like to make a change to a less controversial version, but he was satisfied with his decision. That was the last time I spoke with him.”
“Did Kim know about any of this?”
“I don’t believe so, but the money has always been in his name. She trusted him fully, and he made sure to give her everything she wanted.”
“He was a horrible person. They both were.”
“Yes, I suspected as much.”
“Is that why you’re helping me?”
“That’s part of the reason.” Benji cleared his throat. “It pains me to say this, but I was the one who helped Robert and Kim with your adoption.”
Chris hung up the call.
9
