Chapter 9 - The Frozen Assets
The holding cell at the local precinct was cold,
the metal bench hard against Preston’s back,
as he stared at the concrete floor.
He had been there for hours,
waiting for his lawyer to arrive,
his mind desperately searching for a way out of this trap.
When his attorney,
a high-priced corporate lawyer named Richard,
finally entered the visitor’s room,
he did not look optimistic.
Richard,
Preston said,
grabbing his arm,
you have to get me bail,
you have to use the offshore accounts to pay the bond.
Richard shook his head,
pulling a folder from his briefcase,
and sitting down across from him with a heavy sigh.
The offshore accounts have been seized,
Preston,
he said,
the government worked with the foreign banks,
and every single dollar has been frozen.
Preston’s breath caught in his throat,
his heart racing as his last hope vanished into thin air.
What about my personal accounts,
he asked,
my savings,
my investments in the tech start-up?
All frozen,
Richard replied,
Vivian’s team filed a temporary restraining order on all your assets,
and they are claiming everything as restitution for the stolen trust funds.
Preston slumped back in his chair,
his face hollow,
realizing he was completely bankrupt,
with no money to even pay his legal fees.
I don't have anything left,
he whispered,
his voice barely audible,
how am I supposed to fight this?
Richard looked at him with a cold professionalism,
closing his briefcase,
and preparing to leave the ruined man behind.
Unless you can find a way to settle with Vivian,
Preston,
you are going to trial,
and with the evidence they have,
you are looking at ten to fifteen years in a federal penitentiary.
Preston felt a cold wave of panic wash over him,
the walls of the small room pressing in on him,
as he realized his life was essentially over.
He had believed he was the smartest man in the room,
that his charm and his wits would always protect him from the consequences of his actions.
But he had forgotten that the room belonged to Vivian,
and that she had been watching his every move,
waiting for the perfect moment to close the door.
He begged Richard to negotiate with her,
to offer her anything,
to beg for a plea deal that would keep him out of prison.
I’ll give her the names of the other partners,
he promised,
I’ll testify against everyone,
just please don't let me go to jail.
Richard promised to convey the offer,
but his expression told Preston that Vivian was not in a forgiving mood.
As the guard led him back to his cell,
May you like
Preston realized that his empire had not just crumbled;
it had been systematically erased by the woman he had dismissed as a mere tradition.
