Chapter 14: The Hidden Ledger
Chapter 14: The Hidden Ledger
Vanessa was a force of nature when she had a mission. Before working at the center, she had been a forensic accountant for a mid-sized firm. With the center closed for the weekend, Vanessa and Marcus turned the back office into a war room, tracking the shell corporations that were funding the smear campaign against Claire.
"Look at this," Vanessa said, pointing her pen at a complex web of financial transfers on her laptop screen. "The money funding the fake news articles comes from a PR firm in New York. But the PR firm is a subsidiary of a holding company based in the Caymans. A holding company that, until last year, was managed by Richard Bennett."
Marcus leaned over her shoulder, his eyes narrowing. "Richard's assets were frozen when he went to prison. He shouldn't have access to this."
"He doesn't," Vanessa grinned triumphantly. "But his power of attorney was transferred to his mother. Eleanor is using frozen, federally flagged assets to fund her personal vendetta against Claire. And that’s not all. I dug into Eleanor's current business holdings. The Bennett real estate empire is severely over-leveraged. She’s essentially bankrupt."
Claire, who was pacing the room with a mug of tea, stopped dead. "Bankrupt? But she came in here wearing a ten-thousand-dollar coat, acting like she owned the city."
"It's a house of cards," Marcus said, the pieces snapping together in his mind. "Claire, Lily has a trust fund set up by Richard’s grandfather, right?"
Claire nodded slowly. "Yes, but it's inaccessible until Lily turns eighteen. Unless..."
"Unless a legal guardian petitions a judge to release the funds for 'the child's immediate welfare and upkeep,'" Marcus finished, his face darkening with disgust. "Eleanor doesn't want custody of Lily because she loves her. She wants custody because Lily's trust fund is the only liquid capital left to save the Bennett empire from total collapse."
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The revelation hung in the air, heavy and sickening. Eleanor was trying to steal a child from her mother just to cover up a financial disaster.
"We have her," Claire whispered, a new, fiery resolve igniting in her chest. The fear was suddenly gone, replaced by a fierce, maternal rage. "We have the truth. Let’s burn her house of cards to the ground."
