Chapter 13 - The Unholy Alliance
Rain beat against the grime-streaked window of a tiny basement apartment on the south side of the city.
Daniel opened the door, wearing a faded sweater and sweatpants. When he saw me standing in the narrow hallway holding a black leather folder, his eyes went wide with disbelief.
"Claire?" he whispered. "What are you doing here?"
"Step aside, Daniel," I said.
I walked into the cramped room. It smelled of stale coffee and damp carpet. A single mattress lay on the floor, and cardboard boxes served as end tables. It was a brutal fall for a man who used to complain about the leather seats in his Honda Pilot.
"Did you look at the document?" he asked, shutting the door carefully behind me.
"I did," I replied, sitting on the lone wooden chair in the corner. "Arthur wants my father's shares. He used Natalie to lure you into a trap, knowing your arrogance would make you take the money and hide it in Oak Park. He calculated that when the fraud collapsed, I would be forced to sell my father's stock to cover your legal fallout."
Daniel fell to his knees beside my chair, burying his face in his hands. "I was a fool, Claire. I thought Natalie thought I was brilliant. I thought I was making a fortune on my own. Arthur told me in confidence that the firm was going to bypass me for partner unless I brought in my own capital..."
"You were greedy, Daniel," I said without a trace of sympathy. "And your ego made you blind."
He looked up, his eyes red and brimming with tears. "What do we do? Arthur is going to destroy everything your father built."
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"We aren't doing anything, Daniel," I said, opening the leather folder. "I am going to destroy Arthur. And you are going to give me every single password, transaction record, and email log you ever sent to Natalie. In exchange, my lawyers will ensure you don't spend the next ten years in a federal penitentiary."
Daniel didn't hesitate for a second. "Tell me what to sign."
