Chapter 36 - Unearthing the Empire
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An hour after Arthur was driven away, our living room turned into a war room.
Mr. Pendelton sat on the sofa, drinking tea while Clara Mercer reviewed the newly uncovered trust documents.
"Arthur's arrest will hold him for twenty-four hours at most," Clara warned, setting down a yellow highlighter. "His high-priced defense lawyers are already filing for an emergency bail hearing."
"Let them," Mr. Pendelton said coldly. "While he's sitting in that holding cell, my forensic accountants are freezing every domestic account linked to his name."
"How much did he steal from my mother?" I asked, sitting beside Evelyn on the couch.
Pendelton looked at Evelyn with deep sympathy. "Your father left you an estate worth roughly fifteen million dollars in 1995, Evelyn. Through aggressive investments, that sum grew to over fifty million. Arthur systematically transferred those assets into his private holdings over two decades."
Evelyn swallowed hard, shaking her head. "I didn't care about the money. I just wanted him to leave us alone."
"The money is how he controls people, Mom," I said, putting my arm around her shoulder. "If we take away his wealth, we take away his weapons."
"Exactly," Clara chimed in. "Without his financial muscle, he can't hire private investigators, he can't bribe security guards, and he can't pay off crooked doctors."
Suddenly, Clara’s laptop buzzed with an incoming email notification. She clicked on it, and her face went completely pale.
"What is it, Clara?" I asked, standing up.
"It's from Arthur's senior legal partner," Clara whispered, her eyes skimming the screen. "They just submitted a formal cross-complaint to the state police."
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"On what charges?" Pendelton demanded.
Clara looked up, her expression filled with shock. "They are charging Sarah with grand theft and harboring a fugitive. They claim Sarah broke into Arthur's estate three weeks ago and stole classified corporate secrets."
