Chapter 8 - The DepositionThe deposition room was cold and sterile.
Daniel sat across from me, flanked by three defense attorneys who looked increasingly miserable. Daniel’s eyes were bloodshot, his jaw clenching repeatedly. The confident, wealthy developer had vanished, replaced by a desperate, trapped animal.
My attorney, Sarah, began the questioning. For four hours, she systematically laid out the financial evidence, matching every forged signature with Daniel’s location data and IP logs.
"Mr. Sterling," Sarah said, sliding a document across the table. "This is the transfer of fifty thousand dollars from your wife’s personal savings account into your mistress’s bank account. Can you explain why your wife would willingly fund your affair?"
Daniel glared at me, his eyes filled with pure hatred. "She... she authorized it. It was a loan."
"We have the hospital records from that exact hour, showing Mrs. Sterling was under heavy sedation following surgery," Sarah replied. "Did she sign it in her sleep?"
One of Daniel’s lawyers leaned over, whispering frantically in his ear. Daniel pulled away, slamming his hand on the table. "She’s trying to ruin me! She was nothing before she met me! I built that company!"
"Actually, Mr. Sterling," Sarah smiled coldly, "our forensic audit shows that Mrs. Sterling wrote your first business plan, secured your first line of credit, and discovered the accounting error that kept you out of bankruptcy in 2022. You didn't build the company. She did. And now, she’s taking it apart."
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Daniel looked at me, his lip trembling. "Mara... please. Don't do this to me. I love you. We can start over."
I looked at him, feeling absolutely nothing. "The only place you're starting over, Daniel, is in a federal penitentiary."
