Chapter 7 - The Confrontation
The court ordered a mandatory mediation session before going to a full criminal trial. The room was tense. Joanna and Simon sat on one side with Clara and Jonathan. Denise sat on the other, looking frantic, her expensive suit now looking like a shield that had failed to protect her. Dorothy and George sat in the corner with a public defender, looking broken.
"We have proof of over $250,000 diverted from Simon’s grandfather's trust directly into Denise’s personal offshore accounts," Clara Vance stated calmly. "We also have proof that the executors, Dorothy and George, signed off on these transfers without ever verifying the welfare of the beneficiary."
Denise snapped. "It was my money! I brought him into this world! If it wasn't for me, he wouldn't even exist! Joanna owes me her entire life—she got to play perfect little housewife because of my baby!"
Simon stood up, looking at Denise with nothing but pity. "You still don't get it, do you? You think motherhood is a transaction. You think because you went through labor, you own a human soul. You didn't give me a life, Denise. You gave me away. Joanna gave me a life."
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The mediator, seeing that Denise had no defense and was completely unstable, looked at her lawyer. "If this goes to trial, your client is looking at five to ten years in federal prison for fraud and embezzlement. I suggest you make a settlement offer."
Denise collapsed into her hands, weeping loudly—not out of remorse, but because her web of lies had completely unraveled.
