Chapter 4 - The Emergency Council
By ten o'clock that evening, the smart-home automation system broadcasted a low chime indicating vehicles arriving at the private security gate.
My aunts—Victoria and Eleanor—along with family lawyer Sterling Vance, had arrived, demanding entry after finding the front gates locked and unresponsive to their remote codes.
I pressed the intercom button from my study. "Let them in through the side service entrance, but route them directly to the underground boardroom."
Ten minutes later, my aunts and the corporate attorney walked into the subterranean conference room, looking flustered and indignant. Victoria adjusted her diamond earrings, glaring at me as I sat at the head of the long glass table.
"Daniel, what is the meaning of this theatrical nonsense?" Victoria snapped, slamming her designer handbag onto the table. "Your mother called us saying you've lost your mind over a pregnant servant. Unlock the estate gates this instant; my driver is waiting."
"Sit down, Victoria," I said, my voice cutting through the room with absolute authority.
Sterling Vance, the attorney, frowned, sensing the shift in the room's atmosphere. He adjusted his tie and looked at me cautiously. "Daniel, as legal counsel for the Hayes estate, I must advise you that locking family members inside a residence constitutes false imprisonment under state law."
Instead of answering, I opened a sleek silver laptop connected to the wall-mounted projector.
The screen flickered to life, displaying a detailed financial audit, text transcripts from the encrypted group chat, and medical documentation of Audrey’s injuries.
"False imprisonment?" I asked, looking directly at Sterling Vance. "Let's talk about real crimes. Let's talk about mail tampering, illegal wiretapping, conspiracy to commit institutional fraud, and systematic domestic abuse."
Victoria and Eleanor exchanged uneasy glances. The color began to fade from their faces as they looked at the projected chat logs displaying their own names alongside instructions on how to psychologically break Audrey down.
"Where... where did you get those?" Eleanor stammered.
"From Mother's phone," I replied calmly. "Along with bank records showing three hundred thousand dollars embezzled from the Hayes Foundation trust and funneled into private shell accounts managed by Mr. Vance here."
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Sterling Vance bolted upright from his chair, his face turning pale green. "That is a malicious fabrication! I am suing you for defamation!"
"Sue away," I smiled coldly, sliding a thick physical folder across the glass table toward him. "The federal prosecutors at the DOJ already received an encrypted copy of this exact server dump twenty minutes ago. By morning, federal marshals will be paying visits to all your summer homes."
