Chapter 3 - The Paper Trail
Daniel blinked, a condescending smirk fighting its way back onto his face. "Are you drunk, Thomas? My name is on the deed. I pay the mortgage."
"No, Daniel. You paid the mortgage," Thomas corrected, his voice dropping to a surgical, deadly timber. He reached into the inside pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out a folded legal document.
"Six months ago, when your little tech startup was quietly bleeding capital, you took out a massive secondary loan against this property to keep up appearances," Thomas explained, stepping closer. "When you defaulted on that loan three months ago, the bank moved to foreclose. I couldn't let my daughter and granddaughter be thrown onto the street."
Eleanor stood up, her face draining of color. "Daniel... what is he talking about? You said the business was booming."
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"It's a lie," Daniel stammered, though a visible sweat had broken out on his forehead.
"I bought the debt through my holding company, Moore Investments," Thomas continued, dropping the papers onto the coffee table right next to the champagne flutes. "I am the primary lienholder. And because you missed the restructuring payment two weeks ago, I executed the default clause yesterday afternoon. The title officially transferred to my LLC this morning. You don't own this house, Daniel. You are trespassing."
