“The valley property,” Chloe whispered.

“Your old family acreage sitting right behind the brick house.”

“He took the deed from the file box in my study three days ago,” I said flatly.

I unzipped my purse in the shadow of the oak desk where nobody could see my hands.

I wrapped the plastic sample container inside a clear sealable plastic bag, pressing out all the air before closing the seal.

I slipped the sealed bag into the hidden inner pocket behind my driver’s license, so the sample was safely tucked away in my purse.