“He thinks seventy-two hours alone in an apartment will make you miss your grandchildren badly enough to sign anything he sends.”

I looked out the window at the gray sea slapping the concrete wall across the street.

“He built the whole offer around a lie,” I said.

“That’s what Brandon does when he’s backed against a wall,” Margaret said.

“He offers you a choice between a fake threat and a real surrender.

He wants you so relieved that the rent demand is gone that you won’t spot the title transfer buried in the text.”

“Tell Mr.