"This can't be right," Amelia muttered, staring at the will. Her hands trembled slightly as she clutched the document. The lawyer’s office was pristine, the air thick with the scent of expensive perfume and unspoken judgments. She'd expected a small share of the family business; a paltry sum at best. Her brother, Leo, had always been the golden child, destined for greatness. This… this was different. He'd received the company. She, on the other hand, had been gifted with their grandmother's old, dilapidated cottage.
The drive back home felt interminable. Each mile seemed to amplify the gnawing sensation in her gut. She pictured Leo, probably already celebrating, while she was left with a building that would take a mountain of work to make liveable. The cottage sat on a neglected plot of land, overgrown with weeds and brambles.
She unlocked the door, the hinges groaning in protest. Inside, the air was stale, musty. As she ventured further inside, she found a locked box hidden under the floorboards. Inside the box were several letters from their grandmother describing a life she never lived with a string of cryptic clues leading to a hidden stash of family heirlooms, all of which had been stolen decades prior. Amelia sat down on a dusty chair, her head spinning, the cottage suddenly seeming less like a burden and more like a puzzle waiting to be solved.