Chapter 6 - The Mother's Defiance
My father's cruel laughter died instantly in his throat.
He stared at me as if I had just grown a second head.
"You are bluffing," he whispered, though the visible sweat on his forehead told a completely different story.
"I hacked into your encrypted server three years ago, right after Daniel and I got married," I explained calmly.
"I found the offshore accounts you opened using the stolen social security numbers of your deceased clients."
The collective gasp from the remaining guests was deafening.
My mother stood taller, adjusting her elegant pearl necklace with a newfound sense of immense pride.
"Meredith showed me the files this morning before the ceremony," my mother stated loudly.
"I already forwarded the entire digital portfolio to my legal team and the Internal Revenue Service."
My father looked around the ballroom, realizing that his elite friends were actively stepping away from him.
He was no longer a respected real estate mogul, but rather a toxic, radioactive criminal.
Allison scrambled to her feet, completely abandoning her weeping bride persona.
She glared at our mother with absolute, unadulterated hatred.
"How could you do this to me on my wedding day?" Allison shrieked, stomping her expensive satin heel.
"Your wedding was paid for with stolen money, Allison," my mother replied coldly.
"It is time you finally learned how to survive without a fraudulent trust fund."
Allison looked wildly from our mother to our father, realizing that her entire safety net was completely gone.
She desperately turned toward Daniel, adopting her most seductive, pathetic smile.
"Daniel, you are a reasonable businessman," Allison purred, stepping far too close to my husband.
"Surely you can see that Meredith is crazy, and perhaps you and I could come to a mutually beneficial arrangement."
I actually laughed out loud at her sheer, unbelievable audacity.
Daniel looked at Allison as if she were a piece of rotting garbage sticking to the bottom of his expensive shoe.
"I would rather burn my entire fortune to ashes than spend a single second in your presence," Daniel said with lethal disgust.
He pulled me closer, pressing a warm, loving kiss to my temple.
"My wife is the only woman in this room worthy of respect," he added loudly.
My father finally snapped, letting out a feral roar as he charged toward Daniel.
He was a desperate, ruined man with absolutely nothing left to lose.
But before he could even take three steps, the lead FBI agent stepped forward and violently shoved my father against the head table.
The agent pulled out a fresh pair of heavy steel handcuffs.
"Richard Vance, you are under arrest for grand larceny, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft," the agent announced.
My father struggled wildly, knocking over a towering, five-tier wedding cake in the process.
As they pinned him to the floor amidst the smashed frosting, he looked directly at me with crazed, bloodshot eyes.
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"You think you won, Meredith?!" he screamed hysterically.
"You don't even know the real reason Daniel married you!"
