Chapter 5 - Whispers in the Dark
The downfall of Apex Realty was swift and public.
Within four days of the Meridian deal collapsing, local business journals began running exposés on the firm's predatory accounting and sudden insolvency. Creditors descended like vultures upon Daniel’s company, placing liens on the office furniture, the company cars, and the bank accounts.
Daniel sat in the back booth of a dive bar downtown, his third glass of scotch sweating on the scarred wood table. He looked years older than the sharp, confident developer who had told his wife he needed ""someone who looked forward.""
His phone buzzed. It was an email from the firm’s landlord: an eviction notice for non-payment of the floor’s commercial lease.
A moment later, Sabrina walked into the dim tavern. She wasn't wearing her elegant camel slacks or her polished coats. She was wearing a cheap trench coat, her hair tied back in a messy knot, carrying an oversized designer duffel bag.
""Where have you been?"" Daniel asked, reaching for her hand across the sticky table. ""I’ve been calling you for thirty-six hours. We need to regroup. We need to hire a bankruptcy litigator together.""
Sabrina didn't sit down. She pulled her hand away before he could touch her skin.
""There is no 'together', Daniel,"" she said coldly.
Daniel blinked, stunned. ""Sabrina, we’re partners. We went through this together. We love each other.""
""Love?"" Sabrina let out a dry, harsh bark of laughter that turned the heads of two patrons down the bar. ""You brought me into this because you promised me twenty percent of a forty-million-dollar development and a two-million-dollar house in Oakridge. Instead, I’m being named as a co-defendant in three separate civil fraud suits filed by Stonegate Holdings!""
""We can fight them!"" Daniel insisted, his voice rising in desperation. ""Emma is emotional. Once she calms down, she’ll settle! She loved me for seven years, Sabrina! She won't destroy me completely!""
""Emma Whitmore isn't emotional, Daniel. She’s surgical,"" Sabrina hissed, leaning down so only he could hear. ""Do you want to know what I found out today from the court filings? Stonegate bought out my personal car lease and my apartment building’s master mortgage through a shell subsidiary. Marcus Vance sent me an ultimatum this morning: cooperate fully with the forensic audit of Apex’s books and testify regarding your embezzlement of marital assets, or they will personally bankrupt me into the next century.""
Daniel’s mouth fell open. ""You wouldn't... Sabrina, you promised me!""
""I promised a wealthy developer,"" Sabrina said without a shred of remorse. ""I didn't promise an unemployed fraud who lives out of an extended-stay motel. I signed the cooperation agreement an hour ago, Daniel. My lawyer is meeting with Emma’s team tomorrow morning.""
She picked up her bag and turned toward the exit.
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""Sabrina!"" Daniel yelled, stumbling out of the booth, knocking his drink onto the floor. ""Sabrina, don't do this!""
She didn't even look back. The brass bell above the door jangled, letting in a gust of freezing winter wind, leaving Daniel standing alone among the broken glass and spilled liquor.
