Chapter 4 - Declared Bankrupt
The descent was swift and brutal.
By Monday morning, the financial markets opened, and the news of Daniel’s frozen assets spread through his industry like wildfire. Without the capital from Sterling Horizon, his logistics company couldn't make payroll. His suppliers halted shipments. His employees walked out.
Daniel tried to hire a high-powered divorce attorney to fight me, claiming he was entitled to half of my assets. But he quickly learned a devastating lesson in corporate law.
I hadn't just given him money; I had structured it as high-interest corporate debt. Daniel’s company owed Sterling Horizon over twelve million dollars. He didn't own half of my fortune; he was my biggest debtor.
I sat in Marcus’s high-rise office, watching the city skyline through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
"He’s panicking," Marcus said, sliding an iPad across the desk. "His lawyer just called begging for a settlement. Evelyn’s credit cards were all declined at Neiman Marcus yesterday. She caused a scene and had to be escorted out by mall security."
I looked at the iPad. It was a video recorded by a bystander. Evelyn, stripped of her fake wealth, was screaming at a terrified cashier, her makeup smeared, holding up a pair of designer shoes she could no longer afford. The woman who had called me poor was now experiencing it herself.
"Don't offer a settlement," I said, sipping my coffee. "Foreclose on the business. Liquidate his assets to cover the debt."
"There is one more thing," Marcus added, his expression turning serious. He pulled a manila folder from his desk. "During the forensic audit of Daniel's business accounts, we found irregularities. Small amounts of money being siphoned off over the last two years. Cash withdrawals, expensive jewelry, hotel suites."
I frowned. "Evelyn?"
"No," Marcus said gently. "Someone else. Her name is Chloe. She's a twenty-four-year-old real estate agent. Daniel bought her a condo downtown using company funds."
The betrayal hit me like a physical blow, but the pain only lasted a second. It was quickly replaced by a cold, calculating clarity. He hadn't just been defending his mother's cruelty; he had been looking for an excuse to discard me. He thought he was pushing out a broke housewife so he could move his mistress into the mansion.
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"Does Chloe know he's broke?" I asked.
Marcus smirked. "She does now. The condo was technically a company asset. I sent the eviction papers this morning."
