Chapter 7 - The Web of Lies Unravels
“He promised you the world using my capital,
” I said,
walking slowly toward her until I stood towering over her chair.
“Let’s get one thing straight,
Clare.”
“You are not an innocent victim swept up in a bad marriage.”
“You were his executive assistant.”
“You processed the fraudulent vendor invoices.”
“You helped him siphon twelve million dollars into accounts bearing your name.”
“I didn't know the scale of it!”
Clare wept openly now,
burying her face in her hands.
“Daniel handled all the corporate filings for Apex Horizon.”
“He told me it was just tax restructuring to protect our future assets from market downturns.”
“I was just doing what he told me to do.”
“Ignorance is not a defense to grand larceny and wire fraud,
Clare,
” I replied,
my voice devoid of pity.
“Federal investigators don't care about your bedtime stories with Daniel.”
“They care about the paper trail.”
“And right now,
that paper trail leads directly from Meridian’s treasury to your personal bank accounts and your son’s trust fund.”
She looked up at me,
her eyes red-rimmed and desperate.
“I have the flash drive.”
The words hung in the air between us like a suspended blade.
I narrowed my eyes.
“What flash drive?”
“Daniel’s private backup drive,
” she whispered,
glancing nervously toward the foyer as if expecting him to jump out of the shadows.
“It contains every single encrypted communication between him and the shell company brokers in the Cayman Islands.”
“It has recordings of his phone calls detailing how he planned to push you out of the company entirely once the merger was finalized.”
“He was going to frame you for insider trading,
Valentina.”
The breath caught in my chest.
Even after everything I had uncovered,
the sheer depth of his malice still managed to shock me.
He hadn't just planned to cheat on me and steal my money.
He had planned to destroy my professional reputation forever.
“Where is it?”
I asked,
my voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.
“In a safety deposit box at the Texas First National Bank downtown,
” Clare said,
reaching into her soaked handbag and pulling out a small silver key attached to a plastic tag.
“The key is here.”
“And the access code is memorized in my head.”
“Why are you giving this to me?”
I asked,
staring at the key resting on her palm.
“Because Daniel threatened me tonight,
” she whispered,
terror tightening her vocal cords.
“When the board suspended him,
he came to my house in a rage.”
“He said if I didn't take the fall for the embezzlement and claim sole responsibility,
he would make sure I never saw my son again.”
“He has powerful connections in the state legislature,
Valentina.”
“He would destroy me.”
“And he would take Leo away.”
I reached out,
picked the silver key off her palm,
and dropped it into my pocket.
“He won't be destroying anyone anymore,
Clare.”
May you like
“Because by tomorrow morning,
federal marshals will be placing him in handcuffs.”
