The subpoena arrived on a Tuesday, formal and unexpected despite months of careful preparation for the trial's broader proceedings, and Ivy stared at the document for a long moment before fully absorbing what it meant.

"They're deposing me," she said, showing it to Sterling that evening, disbelief and old fear tangling together in her chest. "Not as a formal trial witness, but for pretrial discovery. They want to establish my, and I'm quoting directly here, quote, personal relationship to the alleged victim narrative surrounding the fraud case involving my father, unquote."

Sterling's jaw tightened reading it. "They're trying to build the narrative that this entire prosecution is personally motivated. Using...