Chapter 8 - The Digital Footprint
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The following morning, sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows of my dining room.
Claire looked rested for the first time in months, though the dark bruises on her skin were a stark reminder of what she had endured.
Over breakfast, she began to detail the systematic torture Nathan had subjected her to over the past year.
“It started small,” Claire said softly, her voice steadying. “He told me I was bad with money. He took my credit cards, opened a joint account, and then changed the password so I couldn't see the statements.”
“Classic financial isolation,” Sarah Vance noted, taking notes on her tablet.
“Then he began intercepting my mail,” Claire continued. “If my friends called, he would answer the phone and tell them I was sleeping or sick. Eventually, people stopped calling.”
I squeezed my coffee mug so tightly my knuckles turned white. “And the business side? Did he ever mention Grant Meridian?”
Claire nodded. “He used to brag about it at night. He said the executives at his company were idiots. He told me he had a system that made him untouchable.”
“Did he ever show you files?” Sarah asked.
“He didn't show me, but he used a shared home tablet to track his personal wealth,” Claire revealed. “He stored his cloud passwords on it. He thought I was too stupid to understand what any of it meant.”
I pulled out my phone and dialed Dana Ruiz at Grant Meridian headquarters.
“Dana,” I said as soon as she answered. “We need your forensic IT team. Claire has access to Nathan’s secondary cloud backups.”
“We’re ready,” Dana replied immediately. “Bring her in through the private garage. I’ve secured the third-floor conference room.”
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Claire looked at me, her eyes showing a sudden spark of determination that I hadn't seen in years.
“I know the password, Mom,” Claire said firmly. “Let’s tear his empire down.”
