Chapter 7 - The Trap Snaps Shut
Before I married Daniel, I worked as a forensic accountant. It was how we met. I was auditing one of his father’s subsidiary companies.
When I moved into the Hamilton estate, Lorraine made it clear I was a glorified broodmare. She locked her private office, but she was arrogant. She thought I was just a subservient wife.
She didn't know that three years ago, while looking for a spare key to the wine cellar, I had stumbled upon her hidden wall safe. I had watched her punch in the code from down the hall.
0418. Daniel’s birthday. Typical narcissistic mother.
"She has a safe behind the oil painting of her late husband in the main library," I told Jenkins. "She keeps physical ledgers of off-the-books transactions. Bribes. Payoffs. She doesn't trust digital banking for the dirty work."
Jenkins’ eyes lit up. "If we can find a ledger detailing a payoff to Dr. Thorne, we have her on conspiracy, fraud, and attempted kidnapping."
"Get a warrant," Marcus said immediately.
"I’m on it," Jenkins replied, rushing out of the room.
The next three hours were the longest of my life. I sat in the hospital bed, holding Ethan, watching Rebecca sleep, and waiting for the phone to ring.
I thought about the last eight years. The subtle gaslighting. Daniel telling me I was overreacting when I caught him lying about his whereabouts. Lorraine telling me I was lucky to have a husband who tolerated my "emotional outbursts."
They had been laying the groundwork for my insanity for years. They had built a cage around me so slowly I didn't realize I was trapped until they tried to lock the door.
At 4:00 PM, Marcus's phone buzzed. He answered it, listened for thirty seconds, and smiled.
He hung up and looked at me. "They raided the estate. They found the ledgers. Lorraine transferred two hundred thousand dollars to an offshore account owned by Dr. Thorne three days before you went into labor. It was labeled as a 'consulting fee'."
I let out a breath I felt like I had been holding for nine months.
May you like
"What happens now?" I asked.
"Now," Marcus said, "the DA drops the hammer."
