Part 3: The Boardroom Audit
The central conference room at Harris Trust & Development was a battlefield of quiet panic at 9:00 a.m. the following morning.
My father sat at the head of the glass table, his grey hair brushed smooth, his face fixed in a stern mask of authority.
Monica sat beside him, reviewing a set of guardianship transfer documents with a confident, arrogant smile.
"Joanna is late for the emergency family compliance meeting," Monica announced to the remaining board members.
"We need to initialize the corporate recovery clause before the state protective services file their formal report."
"The report has already been finalized, Monica," I said, stepping through the double glass doors before she could turn the page.
I wore an immaculate dark blazer, my posture tall, my mind entirely focused on the numerical alignment.
Marcus Bell, our senior trust attorney, walked in right behind me, sliding a gold-embossed leather portfolio onto the table.
The grand digital monitors on the wall lit up instantly, displaying Susan's high-definition driveway footage on a looping sequence.
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"You didn't just frame a nine-year-old child to protect the family lineage, Monica," I said, looking into her widening eyes.
"You used the distraction to authorize a four-hundred-thousand-dollar cash advance from the secondary infrastructure line."
