Chapter 3 - THE LUXURY MIRAGE
The bright, relentless sun of Cabo San Lucas beat down against the edge of the private infinity pool, turning the blue waters of the resort into a glittering, expensive mirror.
Daniel Cole lounged on the white leather daybed, his custom designer sunglasses pushed up against his forehead as he raised a frosted glass to toast his mother, Margaret.
Vanessa, his younger sister, was curled up on the neighboring lounge chair, her fingers flying across her phone screen as she carefully curated a sequence of high-society vacation photographs.
"Honestly, Daniel," Margaret sighed, adjusting the wide brim of her straw hat as she leaned back against the plush cushions.
"You handled the situation perfectly, as Claire has spent the last two years acting as though she holds the purse strings of this entire family."
"She needed a reality check, Mom," Daniel replied, a smooth, entitled confidence coloring his tone as he took a slow sip of his drink.
"Vanessa," she giggled, not looking up from her screen, "she was so dramatic during the final weeks of her pregnancy, acting like a standard medical procedure was some sort of personal sacrifice."
Daniel chuckled, his gold watch catching the brilliant sunlight as he adjusted the collar of his linen shirt.
He reached down to check his phone, his smile briefly faltering as he noticed a sequence of automated system alerts from his primary checking registry.
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Warning: Discretionary line of credit suspended due to administrative review, the text notification read.
"Must be a standard network glitch," Daniel muttered, dismissing the warning with the casual arrogance of a man who had never known the indignity of a declined card.
