Chapter 54 It's a Numbers Game
Elena inhaled deeply and then pressed the phone against her ears. "Hi, Eva. "
"Elena? Is that you?" Eva’s voice sounded amused, in fact, she tried to hide her chuckle but failed. "I heard you showed up at the house earlier. I heard you made a huge scene in front of the board members during the dinner. Father is absolutely furious and he hasn't stopped shouting since you left."
"He told everyone I wasn't his daughter, Eva," Elena said, her voice shaking. "He disgraced me in front of everyone. How can you be part of that? How can you just call me like nothing happened after he said those horrible things?"
"What horrible thing?" Eva asked and Elena wished to heavens that it was s rhetorical question. "Come on, you pissed Daddy off and he said mean things. It's normal."
"No, he said I was not his child!'
Eva went mute for a while and Elena felt her heart race. Did they know all this while? Was she the last to find out?
"Elena, please," Eva said, sounding annoyed and totally waving off her last sentence. "Just get off your high horse and listen to me. Nobody wants to hear your drama right now. You shouldn't have come to the house looking like that. You made us all look bad."
"I don't care about looking bad!" Elena yelled. "I found out the truth about Julian! I found out the truth about our family!"
"Calm down," Eva snapped. "I’m calling you about something more concerning than your silly feelings. Father just got off the phone with the lawyers. He said if you don't go back to Julian’s house in two minutes, he is going to block every single one of your accounts and he’s going to take back your inheritance. He's not bluffing, Elena. He’s already started the paperwork."
"He can't do that," Elena said, though she knew he could.
"He already did," Eva said. "He told me to tell you that this is your last chance. Go back to your husband or lose everything. I just called to remind you that you have to pay back my $500,000.”
"You said you wanted payment in kind,” Elena swallowed.
“Well, now that your intimidating husband isn't there to save you anymore, the deal’s off. I want my money back so you better do what Daddy says."
Elena was stuttering so bad that she barely made any sense.
“I’m hanging up now. Don't call this number again until you’re back where you belong."
The call went dead.
Elena stared at the phone in her hand. She felt like the world was disappearing beneath her feet.
“What's going on?" Mandy asked, “What did your sister say?"
Elena barely had time to answer when suddenly, her phone started vibrating again.
But it wasn't a call, it was a notification.
It was one beep, then another. And another.
Debit Alert: $50,000.00 withdrawn.
Debit Alert: $120,000.00 withdrawn.
Debit Alert: $1,200,000.00 withdrawn.
Elena’s eyes widened. She tapped on the notifications.
These were her offshore accounts, the ones her mother had set up for her years ago. They were supposed to be private and for life emergencies. She couldn't even access it unless she was sick or dying.
But the numbers were dropping to zero right before her eyes.
"What is it?" Mandy asked, leaning in.
"He’s doing it," Elena whispered. "He's taking everything. My savings and my inheritance... it's all going."
Her phone rang again. This time it was an unknown number from an international area code.
Elena answered it automatically.
"Hello?"
"Ms. Vance?" a man’s voice said. He sounded professional and cold. "This is the manager from your offshore branch in the Caymans. We are calling to inform you that a full liquidation request has been processed for all your holdings. Since the funds have already been emptied and transferred to the primary Vance Group treasury, we will need you to come to the office or fill out the digital forms for the formal closure of your bank accounts."
"I didn't authorize that!" Elena shouted. "That is my money! My mother left that for me!"
"The accounts were linked to the family trust, Ms. Vance," the manager said. "The primary trustee, Marcus Vance, has the legal authority to move the funds. We are just following the protocol. Since there is a zero balance, the accounts are now inactive. Would you like us to mail the closure forms to your home address?"
Elena didn't answer. She felt like she couldn't breathe. She hung up the phone and let it drop onto the table.
"He took it all," Elena said to Mandy. "I have zero dollars to my name."
Mandy looked at the phone, then at Elena.
The excitement of the "Project Angel" mystery was gone, replaced by the sad reality of what was happening.
Elena was sitting in a small apartment with a suitcase full of clothes and a pile of dangerous papers, and now she didn't even have the money to buy a bus ticket out of the city.
"He's trying to starve you out," Mandy said. "He wants you to be so desperate that you have to crawl back to Julian just to eat."
Elena stood up and looked at the papers on the table. Her father had taken her money, but he hadn't taken the truth about Julian. She still had the proof of what he was. She still had the names and the dates.
Maybe, just maybe, that was worth something.
"I'm not going back," Elena said, her voice getting louder. "He can take every cent I have but I am not going back to be a puppet for Julian."
She looked at Mandy. "We need to find someone who can help us. Someone who hates my father as much as I do right now. There has to be a way to fight this."
Mandy looked at her friend and then quickly went to shut the window and pull the curtains close.
“We’ll find a way, Elena. But for now, you need to stay hidden. If they can take your money this fast, they can find you just as fast."