Chapter 14 - The Black Ledger
The investigation into Carter’s finances was like pulling a thread on a cheap sweater.
The more we pulled,
the more the entire thing unraveled.
Marcus walked into my office late on Friday afternoon,
carrying a small,
leather-bound book.
It didn't look like much,
but his expression told me it was a bombshell.
“We found it,”
he said,
placing the book on my desk.
“It was in a floor safe in his mother’s old house.
Carter thought he was being clever,
keeping a physical record of his 'off-the-books' deals.”
I opened the ledger.
The pages were filled with Carter’s cramped,
arrogant handwriting.
It wasn't just corporate fraud.
It was a map of every person he had ever screwed over.
But as I turned to the middle of the book,
my heart stopped.
There was a section titled PROJECT PHOENIX.
Underneath it was a list of names—names of my family’s oldest business partners.
And next to those names were dates and dollar amounts.
“He was selling them out,”
I whispered,
my fingers trembling as I read the entries.
“He wasn't just stealing from the company.
He was sabotaging my family’s other investments to drive their prices down so he could buy them through shell companies.”
“Look at the last page,”
Marcus said,
his voice grim.
I flipped to the back.
There was a note,
dated only a month ago.
“S. is becoming suspicious. Once the Apex 2.0 launch is complete, I need to trigger the 'insanity' clause in her trust. If she’s declared mentally unfit, I gain full control of the Vance assets. Khloe can play the part of the concerned witness.”
A cold,
visceral rage washed over me.
He hadn't just planned to divorce me.
He had planned to have me committed to a psychiatric institution.
He wanted to strip me of my freedom,
my mind,
and my life,
all to get his hands on money he didn't earn.
“He was going to lock me away,”
I said,
the words feeling like glass in my throat.
“He was going to use my grief over my father’s death against me.”
Marcus nodded.
“We found the draft for the petition.
He had already bribed a doctor to sign the initial evaluation.
They were going to move in on you the day after you got back from the Maldives.”
I sat back in my chair,
shaking.
If I hadn't walked off that plane…
If I hadn't decided to fight back at that exact moment…
I wouldn't be sitting in this office.
I would be in a padded room somewhere,
while Carter and Khloe spent my father’s fortune on yachts and parties.
The level of his depravity was beyond anything I had imagined.
It wasn't just ego.
It was evil.
“Marcus,”
I said,
my voice surprisingly steady.
“Call the District Attorney.
Tell them we have new evidence.
Tell them I’m no longer interested in a plea deal for Carter Sterling.”
“What are you looking for?”
Marcus asked.
“I want him in a maximum-security facility,”
I replied,
looking at the digital clock on my wall.
“I want him to spend the rest of his life in a place where he can’t even see the sun,
let alone a computer screen.
And the doctor?
I want his license revoked and a warrant for his arrest by morning.”
I picked up the ledger and walked over to the shredder.
But then I stopped.
No.
I wouldn't shred it.
I would keep it.
I would keep it as a reminder that being "kind" and "supportive" is only a virtue when the person on the other side has a soul.
I put the ledger in my personal safe.
The battle was over,
but the war had just become personal.
I looked at my reflection in the window.
The "spoiled socialite" was gone.
The "quiet wife" was dead.
May you like
The woman who remained was a predator,
and she had just found her next target.
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