Chapter 4 - The Digital Paper Trail
I didn't just copy the files; I set up an automated, encrypted mirror sync that would forward every single ledger, email thread, and transaction receipt directly to my personal external drive and—as an insurance policy—to a secure drop-box managed by my divorce attorney, Marcus Vance.
As the progress bar ticked slowly toward one hundred percent, the stark reality of what I was looking at settled over my chest.
Travis wasn't just hiding money from me. He was systematically dismantling Northgate Development from the inside, preparing to declare bankruptcy on the primary corporate entity while transferring all profitable assets into a new, unencumbered holding company where I had zero legal claim.
If the divorce went through without these files, my children and I would be left with nothing while Travis walked away a multi-millionaire, hiding behind a mountain of legally airtight corporate protection.
Transfer Complete. 4,812 files synchronized.
I ejected the USB drive just as a sharp, metallic sound echoed from down the hallway outside the archives room.
Clack.
Heavy, measured footsteps approached the double doors. Not the soft-soled shoes of a fellow custodian. The heavy, distinct tread of leather-soled executive shoes.
My breath caught. Travis.
He must have realized he left his briefcase in the office, or perhaps Victor had called him back with an urgent update about the notary.
The handle of the heavy double doors jiggled.
Locked.
"Hello?" Travis’s voice cut through the heavy silence of the basement, cold and demanding. "Who’s in the archives? Open this door."
Panic flared in my chest for a fraction of a second, hot and sharp. But it vanished just as quickly, replaced by the cold, calculated adrenaline I hadn't felt since the days of high-stakes corporate negotiations.
May you like
I didn't answer. I grabbed my cleaning cart, tossed my rag over the top, and slipped behind the towering metal rows of shelving units just as the heavy doors gave a loud, groaning protest under the weight of a security master key.
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