Chapter 5 - Laying the Trap
The next morning, I initiated the trap.
I knew Ray and Daniel’s psychology perfectly. Ray was arrogant, driven by a false sense of superiority. Daniel was greedy, driven by instant gratification and a deep-seated cowardice. They both suffered from the delusion that they were the smartest men in the room.
I had my lawyer send them an official email, proposing a settlement. The terms were intentionally weak: I offered to drop any threats of legal action regarding the hospital incident if they agreed to a 50/50 split of the house's sale value and walked away from the rest of her accounts.
It was a bait they couldn't resist.
Less than an hour later, Ray called me. I let it go to voicemail, then answered the second time.
“See? I knew you’d come to your senses,” Ray’s voice boomed through the speaker, dripping with condescension. “We accept the terms, Elena. It’s best for your mother. We don't want a messy court battle stressing her out in her condition.”
“I want this finished quickly,” I lied, keeping my voice subdued, playing the part of a defeated daughter. “We can meet at the title company downtown tomorrow at 10 a.m. to sign the preliminary transfer agreements.”
“Daniel and I will be there,” Ray said smoothly. “Don't be late.”
I hung up the phone and looked across the hospital room. Detective Vance from the financial crimes unit—a sharp, no-nonsense woman I had worked with on a previous case—was leaning against the wall, sipping terrible hospital coffee.
“They took it?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Hook, line, and sinker,” I replied.
“Good. The DA just approved the warrants based on the wire fraud evidence your team uncovered,” the detective said, pulling a stack of papers from her briefcase. “Transferring funds across state lines to a shell corporation upgrades this to a federal offense. The physical abuse charges will just be the cherry on top.”
I spent the rest of the day finalizing the logistics. I made sure every forged document, every fake medical record, and every illegal wire transfer was neatly cataloged in a physical binder.
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I wanted them to see it. I wanted them to know exactly how thoroughly they had been dismantled.
That night, looking out at the icy city streets from the hospital window, I felt no guilt for what I was about to do to my own family. Blood might be thicker than water, but it doesn't excuse poison.
