“You really need better lighting in here,” Helen commented, tracing the edge of the frame with a perfectly manicured finger. “It’s entirely too gloomy. You work too much. You’re forgetting how to live.”
“Five million dollars,” I stated.
My voice was completely flat, devoid of any fluctuation. I didn’t raise it. I didn’t need to. The sheer gravity of the number sucked the remaining air out of the room.
Arthur sighed. A long, exaggerated sound of parental exhaustion, as if he were dealing with a toddler throwing a tantrum over a broken toy. He walked over and sat down heavily in the leather guest chair opposite my desk, crossing his legs casually.
“Now, let’s not blow this out of proportion,” Arthur began, his tone dripping with practiced country club arrogance. “We had a severe temporary liquidity crisis. My commercial development project in Cabo San Lucas hit massive regulatory delays. We were overleveraged on the bridge loans. We needed immediate cash to keep the contractors on site, and your capital was entirely tied up in that Tokyo acquisition. You were unreachable.”
“So you decided to dig up a 9-year-old legally revoked medical power of attorney,” I countered smoothly, picking up the forged signature page and sliding it across the desk toward him. “You found a negligent or highly compensated notary. You marched into Vanguard National Bank. You forged a $5 million mortgage against my primary residence and wired the cash to yourselves—and then instead of paying the monthly premiums, you bought a Bentley and deliberately defaulted.”
Helen finally turned away from the painting. She crossed her arms, her diamond bracelet glinting in the dim light. She didn’t look guilty. She looked profoundly annoyed that I was daring to question their financial authority.
“You have more money than God,” Helen snapped, dropping the sweet motherly facade entirely. “Your company clears tens of millions in profit every quarter. A $5 million loan is a rounding error to you. We raised you. We paid for your university. We gave you the foundation to build your little empire. Consider this an overdue dividend on our investment in you. Families help each other.”
