Chapter 4 - The War Council
Marcus Vance was a man who looked like he had never lost an argument in his life. He sat across from Claire in a private consultation room at the hospital, reviewing the stack of documents she had provided, along with the medical incident report Dr. Marsh had personally signed.
"This is egregious," Marcus said, his brow furrowed as he read the timeline of the triage desk. "Daniel didn't just make a mistake. He committed insurance fraud by checking Lily in under your family's secondary policy, and he actively misled medical staff during a life-or-death crisis. This is criminal negligence."
"Can I keep him away from Noah?" Claire asked. "Permanently?"
"In Arizona, courts heavily favor joint custody," Marcus said. "But this... this is different. We have a medical record showing his actions directly led to a delay in treatment that caused severe brain injury to the child. We have witnesses—the triage nurse, the security guards, Dr. Marsh. I am going to file for an emergency temporary custody order giving you sole legal and physical custody, with zero visitation rights for Daniel."
"What about his assets?" Claire asked. "He’s a partner at the architecture firm. He has millions in commercial properties."
"We will freeze every single account," Marcus said, a cold smile touching his lips. "He’s been hiding money, Claire. I ran a preliminary check before I came here. He’s been funneling cash into a shell company registered under Vanessa Reed’s name. We're going to claw all of it back. He wanted to build a life with her? We’re going to make sure they build it in poverty."
The door to the room opened, and Dr. Marsh walked in. Her face was grim.
"The MRI results are back," she said.
Claire stood up, her breath catching in her throat. "Tell me."
"There is significant swelling in the left hemisphere, specifically affecting the area that controls speech and motor movement on the right side of his body," Dr. Marsh explained. "He has suffered a stroke-like event due to the lack of oxygen. He will need intensive physical, occupational, and speech therapy. He may never regain full use of his right arm and leg."
Claire closed her eyes, a wave of grief washing over her. But she forced herself to stand tall. "But he will live?"
May you like
"Yes," Dr. Marsh said. "He is stable. But his life—and yours—will be defined by therapy and medical care for the foreseeable future."
"Then we start today," Claire said. She looked at Marcus. "Serve the papers. Serve them at his firm. I want everyone he works with to know exactly what kind of monster he is."
