Chapter 8 - The Falling Mask
The dining room descended into absolute chaos. Guests began standing up, backing away from the table in disgust. Whispers turned into shocked shouts.
"You monster!" a local socialite hissed at Evelyn, pulling her coat over her shoulders. "You kept a child in a shed?"
"It’s a lie!" Evelyn shrieked, her face turning crimson, her composure completely shattering. She pointed a trembling finger at me. "He’s lying! He’s crazy! The heat over there broke his brain! Elena is sick! She’s mentally unstable! I put her back there for her own safety!"
Detective Harris stepped forward, pulling a recorder from his suit pocket. "Mrs. Hayes, are you admitting that you confined Elena Hayes and her minor child inside an unheated storage structure?"
Victoria grabbed her mother’s arm, her voice rising in panic. "Mom, shut up! Don't say anything!" Victoria turned to the deputies. "Get out of our house! My mother owns this property! You are trespassing!"
Marcus Hale pulled a thick legal dossier from his briefcase and tossed it squarely onto the center of the table.
"Actually, Victoria, that brings us to the second reason we are here today," Marcus said calmly. "I am Marcus Hale, legal counsel for Daniel Hayes and Hayes Global Investments."
Marcus turned to the remaining guests. "For five years, Evelyn Hayes and Victoria Hayes have operated a fraudulent scheme. They forged powers of attorney, took out $1.2 million in illegal secondary mortgages against this property, and funneled those funds into unregistered shell companies, including Victoria's fashion brand, Vesper Styles."
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Victoria stumbled backward, bumping into a chair. "That's... that's private corporate business! You can't prove that!"
"We already proved it to the State Treasury six hours ago," Marcus replied smoothly. "And the District Attorney’s office has already issued the warrants."
