Chapter 10 - Cutting the Lifeline
The room was illuminated only by the harsh, blue glow of Natalia’s laptop screen. While her mother finally drifted into an exhausted sleep on the adjacent bed, Natalia opened the black folder. Inside were hundreds of physical and digital invoices she had meticulously collected and backed up over the last eight months.
They were the undeniable proof of Javier's embezzlement. The records detailed exorbitant monthly salary payments to Jimena, Karla, and Mónica. They were all listed as "External Design Coordinators" for Natalia’s highly successful architectural firm.
Not a single one of them had ever worked a day in the office.
There were massive invoices for designer handbags falsely categorized as "Presentation Materials." There were first-class flights to luxury resorts in Cancún filed under "Market Research." There were highly expensive cosmetic dermatology treatments logged as "Public Relations Expenses." Every single one of their personal shopping sprees had been systematically paid for using Natalia’s corporate credit cards.
When she had confronted Javier about this months ago, he gaslighted her, claiming it was just temporary support for "the girls" and demanding she handle it privately to keep the peace. He had accused her of being a selfish, greedy wife. So, she had quietly smiled, backed off, and secretly made copies of absolutely everything.
At 6:05 AM, as the first light of dawn crept over the city, Natalia called her premium banking concierge.
At 6:27 AM, she permanently froze all five corporate credit cards assigned to the family.
At 6:40 AM, she canceled every single recurring wire transfer linked to their accounts.
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At 7:02 AM, she completely blocked Javier’s administrative access to the company’s primary operating accounts.
The financial guillotine had fallen. Now, she just had to wait for the screams.
