Chapter 3 - The Frozen Assets
The next morning, Lily woke up briefly. Her small voice was faint, but her eyes were clear. "Mommy... where's Daddy?"
Emily stroked her daughter's soft hair, her heart aching with a mixture of profound sorrow and protective love. "Daddy is away, sweetheart. He won't be coming back for a while. But Mommy is right here, and the doctors are making you strong again."
"I love you, Mommy," Lily whispered before falling into a peaceful, natural sleep.
While Lily rested, Emily met with Victoria Vance—not related to the hospital director, but one of the most ruthless family law and criminal prosecution attorneys in the state, recommended directly by Dr. Bennett.
Victoria sat in the hospital conference room, reviewing the police reports, bank statements, and electronic logs. "Mrs. Carter, what your husband did isn't just a bitter divorce maneuver. It is high-level criminal negligence and embezzlement. We are going to strike hard before he even has a chance to post bail."
"What do we do first?" Emily asked, her voice steady and resolute.
"First, we file for an immediate emergency ex-parte order for sole legal and physical custody of Lily, with a permanent restraining order," Victoria explained, pulling out a sheaf of legal documents. "Second, we petition the court to freeze all joint bank accounts, investments, and assets to prevent him or his defense team from using marital funds to pay for his legal bail or his mistress's defense."
"Can he touch our savings?" Emily asked. "I saved fifty thousand dollars in a separate high-yield account for Lily's future medical fund."
Victoria smiled thinly. "Not anymore. I’ve already submitted an emergency injunction to the judge. By noon today, every single account linked to Daniel Carter’s Social Security number will be locked solid. He won't even be able to buy a bottle of water from the jail vending machine without the court's explicit approval."
An hour later, Daniel’s high-priced criminal defense lawyer, Richard Sterling, arrived at the courthouse attempting to post Daniel’s two-hundred-thousand-dollar bail using funds from Daniel and Emily’s joint investment portfolio.
When Sterling tried to process the wire transfer, the clerk pulled up the red flag on the screen. "Transaction denied by court order. Case reference: Carter v. Carter. Asset freeze enforced."
Sterling stormed into the holding area where Daniel was sitting in an orange jumpsuit, looking disheveled and frantic.
"What happened? Am I getting out?" Daniel demanded, rushing to the glass partition.
"Your wife just legally paralyzed you, Daniel," Sterling said coldly. "She froze every single penny in your bank accounts. Your credit cards are canceled. She filed for sole custody, and the judge granted an immediate protection order. You can't post bail, and I can't accept your payment unless someone else writes the check."
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Daniel slammed his fists against the glass. "She can't do this! That's my money! I earned it at the hospital!"
"You used hospital property to poison your child's survival chances, Daniel," Sterling snapped, pulling back his papers. "Public opinion is entirely against you. The media has picked up the story. You are the most hated man in this city right now."
