Chapter 6 - The Embezzlement Trail
The boardroom erupted in chaotic murmurs as the corporate lawyers leaned forward to inspect the photograph.
It was an old Polaroid I had found in the shoebox with the hard drive.
The picture showed a teenage Chloe standing next to Aunt Eleanor.
But more importantly, Eleanor was holding the exact same handwritten note Chloe had just presented as a recent will.
"Look at the date stamped at the bottom of the Polaroid," I instructed the board members.
"It says 2006, which means this note was a meaningless draft written two decades ago, not last week."
Chloe’s face drained of all color, her hands trembling as she stared at the photograph.
"That is a fake!" Chloe shrieked, pointing a manicured finger at me.
"She photoshopped it to steal my rightful inheritance!"
Mr. Harrison stepped forward, projecting his voice across the room.
"We will let a forensic expert determine that," he stated firmly.
"But until then, Mrs. Vance remains the majority shareholder and the rightful owner of this company."
The lead board member, an older man with stern eyes, nodded in agreement.
"Miss Sterling, I suggest you leave the premises before we press charges for corporate fraud," he said.
Chloe grabbed her designer bag, her eyes burning with a hateful fury.
"This is not over, Clara," she hissed, storming past me toward the elevator.
I took a deep breath, finally sinking into the leather chair at the head of the table.
"We won," I whispered to Mr. Harrison, feeling a massive weight lift from my shoulders.
"We won the building, but we still have the custody hearing on Friday," he reminded me.
"And we need to decode the hard drive to prove Julian is a criminal."
We spent the next four hours in the executive office, plugging the hard drive into a secure laptop.
The files were heavily encrypted, hiding years of Julian's shady financial transactions.
But I remembered his obsession with his own ego.
I typed in the name of his college fraternity, and the screen flashed green, unlocking thousands of documents.
"Look at these transfers," Mr. Harrison pointed at the screen, his eyes widening.
"He wasn't just hiding money from you, Clara."
"What was he doing?" I asked, scanning the endless rows of numbers.
"He was embezzling millions of dollars from Eleanor’s charitable foundation," Mr. Harrison gasped.
The betrayal hit me like a physical punch to the chest.
Julian hadn't just cheated on me; he had been stealing from my family for years.
"Print everything," I ordered, my voice cold and determined.
"I am going to destroy him in court."
Suddenly, the office door burst open, and three armed police officers rushed inside.
"Clara Vance?" the lead officer barked, holding a piece of paper.
May you like
"Yes?" I answered, my heart skipping a beat.
"You are under arrest for the attempted murder of Julian Vance."
