Chapter 5 - Uncovering the Truth
The public eviction from my office should have been the end of it. Most people, when faced with corporate security and a stern legal team, would realize the game was up and slink away to lick their wounds. But desperation makes people reckless, and my father’s desperation had a deeper, darker root than I initially realized.
Two days after the lobby incident, David Miller called me into his private conference room. He didn’t look triumphant; he looked grim.
“Clara, we did some digging into your father’s background after that letter went out,” David said, sliding a thick file across the polished mahogany table. “We wanted to see if he actually retained an attorney or if he was just bluffing.”
“And?” I asked, opening the folder.
“He didn't retain an attorney. In fact, the address on that business card above the pawn shop belongs to a scam operation run by a guy who’s currently under investigation for consumer fraud. But that’s not the most interesting part.”
David pointed to a printed financial summary and a series of court dockets inside the file.
“Your father isn’t just broke because of poor life choices, Clara. He’s drowning in high-interest debt. Six months ago, he took out multiple predatory payday loans and used a local loan shark outfit to cover mounting gambling losses at the riverboat casino downtown.”
I scanned the documents. The numbers were staggering. He owed over forty thousand dollars to unlicensed lenders who charged astronomical daily interest rates. Men who didn’t send polite legal letters—men who broke kneecaps when payments were late.
“So the fifty thousand dollars he demanded from me wasn’t for medical bills or living expenses,” I realized aloud. “It was ransom. He’s trying to pay off his criminal debts using my name.”
“Exactly,” David confirmed. “If he doesn't pay up soon, he’s facing some very dangerous people. That’s why he tracked you down. You weren't just a convenient target; you were his literal last resort before things got physical for him.”
A strange mixture of emotions washed over me—anger, disgust, and a hollow, lingering sadness. Even in his old age, his first instinct when facing destruction was to exploit someone else, to throw another person under the bus to save his own skin. Exactly like he did to me when I was fifteen.
“Can these lenders come after me?” I asked, a sudden chill running down my spine.
“Legally? Absolutely not,” David reassured me firmly. “You have no legal obligation for his personal debts, and since you’ve been legally estranged for two decades, there’s no community property or familial liability link. However, knowing the kind of people he’s mixed up with, they might try to use intimidation tactics or show up where he thinks you are.”
“Well, he knows where I work and where I live,” I said, jaw tightening. “We can’t just wait around for loan sharks to knock on my front door or show up at Noah’s school.”
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“Agreed,” David said. “We need to take preemptive action. We take this entire file straight to the local police precinct, file a formal report regarding extortion and harassment, and secure a restraining order that covers both my father and any associates acting on his behalf. At the same time, we let the local authorities know about his dangerous financial entanglements so they keep an eye on his movements.”
“Let’s do it,” I said, closing the folder with a sharp snap. “Let’s put an end to this circus once and for all.”
