Chapter 4 - The Ambush at the Law Office
On Wednesday morning, Grace and Charles Montgomery stormed into the executive conference room of Vance, Sterling & Cross in Century City.
Grace looked haggard, her designer blowout unkempt, wearing dark sunglasses to hide her swollen eyes. Charles looked twenty years older, his hands trembling as he clutched a leather briefcase.
"Elena!" Grace cried out as I walked into the conference room, wearing a tailored charcoal pantsuit with my hair styled carefully over the white medical bandage. "You have to drop the charges! Jackson is sitting in a cell with hardened criminals! The banks have frozen our personal checking accounts!"
"Take a seat, Mrs. Montgomery," Uncle Arthur commanded from the head of the table, sliding a two-hundred-page forensic audit across the glass.
Charles adjusted his glasses, scanning the first page. His face turned the color of ash.
"What is this...?" Charles whispered.
"This is the documented record of your son's felony bank fraud, grand larceny, and corporate embezzlement," Arthur stated with lethal precision. "Jackson forged Elena’s signature on four separate bank instruments, drained her pre-marital investment accounts, and used your Beverly Hills estate as collateral for an illegal three-million-dollar hard-money loan."
"No... Jackson wouldn't do that to us," Grace stammered, her voice shaking.
"The loan default notice was served to your residence at nine this morning, Grace," I said calmly. "The lender has initiated non-judicial foreclosure proceedings on your home. You have thirty days to vacate the property."
Grace collapsed into her chair, clutching her chest. "Elena... please! We are your family! You have millions from your architectural partnerships! You can save our home with a single wire transfer!"
I leaned forward across the mahogany table, looking directly into the eyes of the woman who had watched me bleed onto her tablecloth without lifting a finger.
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"When your son threw that platter at my head, Grace, you didn't see a family member," I said, my voice ice-cold. "You saw an asset to exploit. You chose silence while I bled. Now you can choose where to sleep when the marshals lock your gates."
Arthur stood up, pointing to the exit. "This meeting is concluded. You will communicate solely through our criminal and bankruptcy divisions."
