Chapter 7 - The Final Ultimatum
Margaret let out a sharp gasp of pain as Julian twisted her wrist back just enough to force her to step down off the porch.
"Julian! Let go of me!" Margaret screeched, glaring at her son with absolute disbelief. "How dare you put your hands on your own mother over this—this nobody?"
"She is my wife," Julian roared, his voice shaking the pillars of the porch. "She is the only reason I survived the early years of my career, the only person who believed in me when I had nothing, and the only one in this family who possesses an ounce of human decency!"
Julian shoved her hand away, stepping down onto the driveway so he towered over both Margaret and Jennifer.
"You came here thinking you could bully her, intimidate her, or manipulate me into backing down," Julian said, his voice dropping into a cold, menacing register. "Let me make something crystal clear to you both. As of one hour ago, my legal team filed criminal fraud charges against you, Jennifer, and Michael for the embezzlement of over two million dollars from our family accounts."
Jennifer gasped, clutching her chest. "Criminal charges? You're sending your own sister to prison over bookkeeping?"
"It’s not bookkeeping, Jennifer. It’s grand larceny," Julian corrected her coldly. "Every single shell corporation you set up, every fake invoice you submitted, every luxury asset you purchased with stolen funds—it’s all documented in the forensic audit currently sitting on the federal prosecutor's desk."
Margaret went completely pale, her knees buckling slightly. She grabbed Jennifer’s arm to steady herself. "Julian... you can't do this. We're family! Family doesn't send family to prison!"
"Family doesn't treat each other like slaves," Julian replied without a shred of pity. "Family doesn't steal millions of dollars while smiling to your face. You made your choice five years ago when you decided to exploit my absence and abuse my wife. Now, you get to live with the consequences."
Julian turned his back on them, walking back up the steps and pulling me close against his side.
May you like
"Get off my property," Julian said, not even looking back. "And if you ever come within five miles of this house again, I won't just let the courts handle you. I'll make sure you spend the rest of your lives defending yourselves from behind bars."
Without another word, Julian pulled me inside and locked the heavy oak front door, leaving Margaret and Jennifer screaming obscenities in the empty driveway.
