“Seven days is enough for the law,” Arthur said. “Julian knew exactly what he was doing when he asked you to sign those papers.”
We moved into the small records room behind Arthur’s desk, where shelves of blue-backed legal documents rose to the ceiling. Arthur pulled a large cardboard tube from a rack and unrolled a blue plat map on a long table.
“This is the Oak Tailor shop,” Arthur said, tapping a small square at the intersection of two busy streets. “And these surrounding parcels are already owned by Caleb’s development group.”
“They have bought everything else?” I asked.
“Every square inch,” Arthur said. “The shop is the final piece of the puzzle. Without it, the tower cannot be built because the city zoning requires a minimum lot width.”
“He wants to demolish it,” I said, thinking of the child-sized red silk dress currently sitting in my backpack. “He wants to tear down Julian’s life.”
“He wants to demolish Lily’s memory,” Arthur said softly. “Julian made that red dress for his daughter before she passed. The shop was the only place he felt she still existed.”
