She did not have to; she believed the machinery was already turning in her favor, that the will about to be read would hand her the opening she needed, and so she simply sat, breathing steadily behind my shoulder, playing the devoted sister with the ease of long practice, biding her time.

Patience like that is the most frightening thing a person can bring into a room, because it means they are certain — certain enough to wait, certain enough not to grab, certain the thing they want is already, quietly, on its way to them.

Chapter 9 — The Reading Begins

Mr.

Bradley opened the heavy oak door of his office and looked, first, straight at me.

“Frances, please come in,” he said gently.