Chapter 3: The Investigation Begins
The room became impossibly quiet.
Even Grace seemed to sense the change.
She shifted against my chest, letting out a tiny sigh before settling back to sleep, completely unaware that the world around her had just begun to collapse.
Dominic stared at the three federal investigators standing inside my hospital room.
For the first time since I had met him nine years earlier, he looked genuinely frightened.
Not angry.
Not offended.
Afraid.
The lead investigator stepped forward and displayed his credentials once more.
"Mr. Dominic Hayes?"
Dominic swallowed.
"...Yes."
"My name is Special Agent Daniel Brooks with the Financial Crimes Task Force."
He handed Dominic a thin envelope.
"We have several questions concerning financial transactions connected to Hayes Luxury Hospitality."
Dominic didn't take it immediately.
His eyes drifted toward me.
Then toward Rebecca.
Finally toward Charlotte.
"You planned this."
Rebecca answered before I could.
"No, Mr. Hayes."
"You planned this."
She smiled professionally.
"My client simply chose not to protect you from the consequences of your own decisions."
Charlotte slowly backed toward the wall.
"What financial transactions?"
Nobody answered.
Not immediately.
Because every answer would permanently destroy the life she believed she had just married into.
...
Dominic finally accepted the envelope.
His fingers trembled as he opened it.
The first page contained account numbers.
The second contained dates.
The third contained wire transfers.
I recognized every one of them.
Because I had uncovered them months earlier while reviewing archived merger documents.
Back then I hadn't wanted to believe what I was seeing.
At first I assumed they were accounting errors.
Duplicate invoices.
Incorrect routing numbers.
Simple mistakes.
But accountants make mistakes.
They don't create twenty-seven shell corporations across four different countries.
They don't approve invoices for contractors who never existed.
And they certainly don't transfer thirty-two million dollars through six offshore accounts in less than eighteen months.
That required planning.
Intent.
Fraud.
Dominic looked up.
"I want my attorney."
"You may certainly contact counsel," Agent Brooks replied.
"But we'd appreciate your cooperation."
"I have nothing to say."
Rebecca quietly laughed.
"I imagine that will become expensive."
...
Charlotte looked between all of us.
"I don't understand."
Her voice shook.
"What exactly are they accusing you of?"
Dominic didn't answer.
Instead, he folded the papers and slipped them back into the envelope.
"There has been a misunderstanding."
Agent Brooks calmly corrected him.
"There have been forty-three misunderstandings."
Another investigator opened a tablet.
"Each supported by banking records."
Charlotte blinked.
"Forty-three?"
Rebecca crossed her arms.
"Actually, we've documented fifty-one."
Dominic shot her a look filled with hatred.
"You've been spying on me."
"I was married to you."
She tilted her head slightly.
"I simply paid attention."
...
The charge nurse stepped closer to my bed.
"Mrs. Hayes, are you feeling okay?"
I smiled tiredly.
"I've had better afternoons."
She looked at Grace.
"And the baby?"
"She's perfect."
The nurse adjusted Grace's blanket before quietly leaving.
For just a second, I focused only on my daughter.
Not the investigators.
Not Dominic.
Not Charlotte.
Not the lawsuit.
Only Grace.
She deserved one parent whose attention could never be bought by money.
I silently promised she would have one.
...
Charlotte finally found her voice.
"You told me Evelyn never cared about the business."
Dominic remained silent.
"You said she hated finance."
Silence.
"You said she couldn't even read investment reports."
I almost smiled.
Rebecca answered instead.
"My client has a master's degree in financial risk analysis from MIT."
Charlotte slowly turned toward me.
"What?"
"For seven years," Rebecca continued, "Evelyn personally reviewed every acquisition proposal before Mr. Hayes presented it to investors."
Charlotte looked back at Dominic.
"You told everyone those were your projections."
Dominic looked away.
"They were."
Rebecca calmly placed another document on the bedside table.
"They were Evelyn's."
...
Charlotte picked it up.
Across the top of the page appeared my original digital signature.
Prepared by:
Evelyn Hayes, Senior Risk Analyst
Below it...
My recommendations.
My financial models.
My projected returns.
Dominic's signature appeared only on the final approval page.
Charlotte whispered,
"You stole her work."
"No."
"I presented company research."
Rebecca shook her head.
"No."
"You erased the author."
Dominic's breathing became uneven.
"I built that company."
"So did she," Charlotte answered quietly.
"And apparently she was the only one paying attention."
...
Agent Brooks looked toward Rebecca.
"Ms. Lawson, we'd appreciate copies of the remaining documentation."
Rebecca nodded.
"You'll have everything."
Dominic immediately stepped forward.
"No."
Every head turned toward him.
"Those files are protected."
Rebecca smiled.
"They were."
She looked directly into his eyes.
"Until you committed fraud."
Dominic understood exactly what that meant.
Attorney-client privilege had limits.
Fraud wasn't one of them.
For the first time since entering the room...
He realized he wasn't fighting his ex-wife anymore.
May you like
He was fighting federal investigators.
And they had already started winning.
