Chapter 7 - THE RECKONING AT THE DOOR
Ten minutes later, Sophia marched down the stairs. She was wearing her designer coat, dragging a massive wheeled suitcase behind her, her phone clutched tightly in her hand as she tapped aggressively on the screen.
She didn't look at Richard. She barely glanced at Ethan as she walked past the living room toward the front door.
"Sophia," Ethan said quietly, standing up from the sofa.
She paused with her hand on the brass door handle, turning her head back with an icy glare. "What? Did you forget something? Do you want to beg me to stay? Because save your breath. I wouldn't stay in this toxic madhouse one more minute."
"I'm not asking you to stay," Ethan said, walking slowly toward her. "I'm telling you that you won't be taking your car."
Sophia scoffed, her eyes flashing with anger. "Excuse me? That car is registered in my name!"
"It was purchased using funds illegally transferred from the joint contingency account—funds that belong to the family trust," Ethan replied smoothly, pulling a set of keys from his pocket. "I’ve already spoken to our bank and our legal counsel. All joint assets are currently frozen pending a criminal fraud investigation. You are leaving with the clothes on your back and the contents of that suitcase. Anything else you acquired using stolen money stays right here."
For the first time since the ordeal began, true panic flickered across Sophia’s face. "You can't do that! That's illegal! I'll sue you for abandonment! I'll take half the house!"
"Sue me all you want," Ethan said, his voice hard as iron. "Give my lawyer a call. But keep in mind—the state attorney general’s office takes wire fraud and elder abuse framing very seriously. I haven't decided yet whether I'm handing over the raw security footage directly to the police or letting your lawyer see it first. Your next move determines my next move."
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Sophia stared at him, realizing with horror that the spineless husband she thought she could control had completely vanished. There was nothing left to manipulate.
With a furious curse, she yanked the front door open, shoved her suitcase through the threshold, and slammed the door so hard the walls shook.
