Chapter 11 - The Signature Problem
Forensic examination showed the prenuptial amendment was electronically signed from Daniel’s account.
That did not prove Daniel signed it.
But it did not prove he had not.
Daniel had spent years delegating authentication tokens to assistants during travel.
Careless.
Convenient.
Dangerous.
Bianca’s attorneys knew that ambiguity favored them.
“If you attack every signature as forged,” Peter warned, “a judge will ask why you maintained such terrible controls.”
“Because I was arrogant.”
Peter raised an eyebrow.
“That may be the first useful answer you’ve given me.”
The financial case became a mirror.
Some documents were forged.
Some were authentic.
Some reflected Daniel signing things he barely understood.
The truth would not make him innocent of negligence.
He accepted that.
Hale Soundworks employees began panicking about Ashcroft’s default notice.
If the lender forced a sale, hundreds of jobs were at risk.
Daniel held an all-company meeting in Studio A.
“I cannot promise everything stays the same,” he said. “But I will not secretly transfer control to resolve my personal problems.”
One producer asked, “Are we closing?”
“I don’t know.”
That honesty frightened people.
But it also stopped rumors.
Afterward Eric approached.
“I found an unusual access pattern.”
“What?”
“The night Bianca’s conversation recorded, she wasn’t scheduled here.”
“I know.”
“Her keycard used your executive credential.”
Daniel frowned.
“She has her own.”
“Exactly.”
Eric pulled up six months of logs.
Bianca repeatedly used Daniel’s credential after midnight.
The same access method appeared on document servers.
Someone was creating a record that Daniel himself accessed files later used in the trust scheme.
“Frame me,” Daniel said.
“Maybe.”
“Can you prove who physically entered?”
“Some cameras.”
They reviewed footage.
On multiple nights, Adrian entered through loading entrances.
Bianca entered separately.
Then one clip showed a third man.
Daniel recognized him.
Julian Reed.
Caroline’s brother.
Daniel called him immediately.
Julian denied being involved.
Daniel sent the screenshot.
Twenty minutes later Julian arrived.
“You want to explain?”
Julian looked sick.
“Bianca approached me.”
“When?”
“Last year.”
“About Lily’s trust?”
“Yes.”
Daniel’s anger sharpened.
“You knew she was trying to control it.”
“She told me you were planning to pledge Lily’s Reed shares against Hale Soundworks debt.”
“That was a lie.”
“I know that now.”
“You believed her.”
Julian snapped, “You nearly bankrupted your own company twice!”
“And that justified conspiring with my wife?”
“I wasn’t conspiring.”
“Then why were you here at midnight?”
Julian looked away.
“She offered to help me buy back voting rights from Lily’s trust.”
Daniel stared.
“You wanted Lily’s shares.”
“They should never have left the family voting block.”
“They belong to Lily.”
“She is eight!”
“And you’re fifty-three. What’s your excuse?”
Julian’s face reddened.
Grace appeared in the doorway.
“Caroline knew.”
Julian went pale.
Grace continued.
“She knew you were angry about the trust.”
“That had nothing to do with the crash.”
“Maybe not.”
Daniel looked at him.
“What did Bianca promise?”
“If Lily moved abroad and administrative control changed, the advisory committee could approve a sale of certain voting rights back to Reed Media.”
“For how much?”
Julian whispered, “Twenty million.”
“The shares are worth sixty-four.”
“I thought I was protecting the company.”
Daniel laughed bitterly.
Everyone protected something.
That was apparently the favorite word of people doing harm.
“Did you know about Aurora?”
“No.”
“Adrian?”
“No.”
“Caroline’s car?”
Julian stared at him.
“No.”
Daniel believed that part.
Not because Julian deserved trust.
Because his fear looked different.
Shame, not terror.
Julian handed over his messages with Bianca.
One changed everything.
Bianca had written:
Once Lily is placed, Daniel will be too busy defending his parental fitness to fight the trust transfer.
Daniel read it twice.
“Parental fitness?”
Julian nodded.
“She said she had evidence you were unstable.”
“What evidence?”
“She never showed me.”
Daniel felt cold.
Bianca had planned not merely to send Lily away.
She planned to portray Daniel as unfit.
Then Grace remembered something.
“Your medication.”
Daniel turned.
“What?”
“After your back surgery last year, Bianca insisted on managing your prescriptions.”
Daniel’s stomach tightened.
Three months of pain medication.
Episodes of confusion.
One fall.
One canceled recording session.
Bianca had documented everything.
If she manipulated dosage or simply exaggerated his condition, she could build a custody case.
Peter’s phone rang.
He answered, listened, then looked at Daniel.
“Bianca just filed for emergency guardianship of Lily.”
On what grounds?
May you like
Peter swallowed.
“Substance abuse and cognitive instability.”
