Chapter 1 - The Stolen Identity
The attorney held the phone tightly against his ear.
His expression shifted from professional curiosity to absolute shock.
He slowly placed the receiver back onto its base.
I gripped my crutches, my heart pounding against my ribs.
I asked him what was wrong.
He folded his hands on the desk and looked at me with deep sympathy.
He explained that his private investigator had just pulled the preliminary financial records for my parents.
They did not buy that yacht with their own money.
My mother and father were entirely broke.
They were drowning in massive debt from years of reckless spending.
I stared at him in confusion, asking how they could possibly afford a luxury boat.
The attorney took a deep breath before delivering the crushing blow.
He told me they had used my stolen social security number and my military disability records to secure the loan.
They had forged my signature to buy Madison’s yacht.
While I was bleeding in a uniform, they were using my pain to finance their luxury.
My vision blurred with a mixture of profound grief and explosive anger.
I realized they had intentionally ignored my plea for medical money because they knew giving me cash would expose their massive fraud.
They were perfectly willing to let me lose my leg to keep their secret safe.
I slid the winning lottery ticket closer to the attorney.
I told him I wanted the money deposited into a blind trust immediately.
I instructed him to fund my surgery first, and then I wanted a private security team.
The attorney nodded, furiously writing down my instructions on his legal pad.
He warned me that if we pressed charges, my parents would face federal prison time.
I looked at the worn picture of my little brother Jake in my wallet.
I told the lawyer to prepare the paperwork for a total war.
Before he could respond, my cell phone vibrated violently in my pocket.
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It was a frantic text message from Jake.
The message said that our parents had just kicked him out of the house.
