Chapter 5 - The Ambush at Midtown
The corner conference room of Harrison & Cole overlooked St. Patrick’s Cathedral. A long mahogany table occupied the center of the room, surrounded by eleven leather chairs.
Sitting at the far end was my father’s long-time family lawyer, Richard Harrison.
“Valerie,” Richard said, rising politely. “Thank you for coming. Your father has explained the situation regarding the condo transfer and the family trust re-alignment.”
My father, Arthur, cleared his throat loudly, taking the seat at the head of the table. “Let’s keep this brief. Valerie, sign the transfer deed on page four, and then Vance will execute the trust amendment paperwork.”
Vance slid the legal document across the polished table toward me, handing me a heavy gold pen.
“Sign right here, Val,” Vance coaxed gently. “It’s for our future.”
I looked down at the paper.
Deed of Quitclaim and Transfer: Property 40B, Downtown Condominiums to Horizon Vital LLC.
I set the pen down on top of the contract without uncapping it.
Rebecca groaned loudly, bouncing the baby on her knee. “Oh, my God, Valerie! Are you going to throw another temper tantrum? Just sign the damn paper so I can pay the final installment on my house!”
“Your house in Saint Thomas?” I asked, looking my sister straight in the eye.
Rebecca froze, her eyes widening slightly. “How... how do you know about Saint Thomas?”
Vance’s hand twitched on the table. “Val, what are you talking about? She’s talking about her house in Westchester.”
“No, Vance,” I said smoothly, leaning back in my chair. “She’s talking about the luxury villa in Saint Thomas bought with the three-hundred-thousand dollars you embezzled from my personal investment portfolio over the last eight months.”
The room went dead silent.
Arthur slammed his hand on the table. “Valerie! What nonsense are you spouting now?! Have you completely lost your mind?!”
“Shut up, Arthur,” I said, my voice cutting through the air like a razor blade.
My father’s mouth snapped shut in sheer, unadulterated shock. My mother gasped, clutching her throat.
“Valerie!” Beatrice shrieked. “How dare you speak to your father like that!”
I reached into my briefcase, pulled out a thick stack of spiral-bound financial audit reports, and tossed them onto the center of the table.
“Richard,” I said, looking at the family lawyer. “Page twelve contains the forensic analysis of Horizon Vital LLC. You’ll find that your client, Arthur Whitmore, along with Vance Carter and Rebecca Whitmore, have engaged in systematic bank fraud, identity theft, and grand larceny using forged guarantees under my name.”
Richard Harrison frowns, picking up the document and skimming the first few pages. His face drained of all color in real-time.
“What is this?” Richard whispered, turning his horrified gaze toward Vance. “Vance... did you sign Valerie’s name on a corporate loan with Apex Credit?”
Vance laughed nervously, standing up from his chair. “This is ridiculous! She’s making this up because she’s jealous of Rebecca’s baby! Val, you’re having a mental breakdown—”
Before he could finish his sentence, Vance’s phone began vibrating furiously on the table.
Then Rebecca’s phone rang.
Then my father’s phone rang.
Vance picked up his phone, his hand trembling slightly as he looked at the caller ID. It was his lead investor from Horizon Vital.
He answered it. “Hello?”
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A screaming voice carried through the speaker so loudly that everyone in the conference room heard it:
“Vance! What the hell is going on?! The FBI just froze our primary operational accounts! My bank says Horizon Vital is under federal investigation for money laundering!”
