Chapter 3 - The First Blow
By noon, Daniel made his first offensive move. He didn’t come after me directly; he went after Claire’s support system.
Claire was resting in her hospital room, looking pale but breathing easier with pain medication, when her phone—which I had brought from my apartment—began vibrating incessantly. Dozens of notifications flashed across the screen.
I picked it up. A shared family group chat, managed by Daniel’s mother, Evelyn Sterling, was blowing up with vicious messages.
Evelyn Sterling: 'Look at what our poor Daniel is dealing with. Claire has abandoned her marital home after a hysterical mental breakdown. She’s dragging our family name through the mud with her unstable sister.'
Aunt Beatrice: 'Such a sweet man. Remember when she crashed his car last year? She’s always been reckless. Daniel deserves an angel, not a liability.'
Then came a text directly from Daniel to Claire: 'Your bank cards have been cancelled, your car insurance has been terminated, and I’ve filed an emergency petition for conservatorship claiming you are mentally incompetent. Come home now, or you’ll leave with nothing.'
Claire woke up, her eyes wide with terror as she read the screen. Tears spilled over her bruised cheeks. 'Maya… he’s going to take everything. He always said he would destroy me if I ever tried to leave.'
I sat on the edge of her hospital bed and took her cold hand. 'Claire, look at me. Let him try. Every single threat he makes is a paper trail in a court of law. He’s overplaying his hand because he’s terrified.'
'You don't understand,' she sobbed. 'He owns the judges, the lawyers, the bankers. Everyone in this town owes Daniel a favor.'
'Then we’ll take our fight outside this town,' I said firmly.
Before Claire could answer, the hospital room door swung open without a knock. Standing in the doorway was Attorney Richard Vance—no relation to my boss—Daniel’s high-priced corporate lawyer. He wore a tailored charcoal suit and a predatory smile.
'Ms. Miller, I presume?' Vance said, stepping inside as if he owned the hospital wing. 'I am counsel for Mr. Daniel Sterling. We are serving you and your sister with an immediate injunction prohibiting any further interference in Mr. Sterling’s domestic and business affairs, as well as a notice to vacate your harassment campaign.'
He dropped a thick stack of legal papers onto the bedside table.
I stood up slowly, towering over him despite my plain blouse and sensible trousers. I picked up the injunction papers, flipped through them, and looked him dead in the eye.
'Mr. Vance,' I said smoothly. 'Did Daniel tell you that serving injunctions based on fraudulent financial disclosures constitutes aiding and abetting corporate wire fraud?'
Vance’s smile faltered for a fraction of a second, though he recovered quickly. 'An absurd accusation from a minor state employee. Mr. Sterling’s assets are fully legitimate.'
'Are they?' I walked over to the desk, picked up my tablet, and displayed a certified transactional flow chart linking Sterling Wealth Management to Apex Holdings. 'Tell Daniel that his Cayman accounts are no longer secret. And tell him that if you or your client step foot in this room again, I’ll add obstruction of justice to his indictment.'
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Vance stared at the screen, his professional composure cracking as he recognized the banking routing numbers. He snatched his briefcase, turned on his heel, and walked out without another word.
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