Chapter 2: The Panic Sets In
"David? Tell her she’s lying," Chloe demanded, her voice cracking.
David didn't answer. He was staring at his phone, his thumb shaking as he swiped through his banking app. "The accounts," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "They’re locked. Everything... they’re all frozen."
"What are you talking about?" Chloe grabbed his phone, but the screen was already dead. A notification banner flickered for a second, catching her eye: Account access suspended pending federal audit.
The air in the mansion suddenly felt thin. Chloe looked toward the door, but Evelyn was gone, and the heavy oak entrance seemed to have locked itself with an ominous thud.
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"She’s not just a retired widow, Chloe," David muttered, sinking into a velvet armchair, his face buried in his hands. "I told you we should have been careful. My mother... she doesn't just manage money. She is the money. Every investment firm, every offshore account, every lead she gave us—it was all a setup."
Chloe realized then that the "wealth" she had flaunted to the city’s elite wasn't theirs. It was a loan, and the interest rate was about to be paid in full.
