Victor's Debt
Chapter 04 - Victor's Debt
Victor's urgency about the mansion, Claire learned through Teresa's investigation, had nothing to do with sentimental attachment to the family home and everything to do with a financial crisis he'd been quietly managing for nearly two years.
"He's leveraged the mansion as collateral against a considerable personal debt," Teresa told Claire, reviewing the financial records her team had obtained. "Nearly three million dollars, accumulated through a series of failed investments he apparently made using the estate's own assets without Margaret's knowledge or consent."
"He's been stealing from his own mother," Claire said slowly.
"That's the practical effect, yes," Teresa confirmed. "The mansion's title is still in Margaret's name, but Victor has been using forged authorization documents to borrow against its value. If Margaret signs the title over to him directly, he can settle the debt, liquidate the property, and effectively make the entire financial trail disappear before anyone examines it closely."
"That's why he chose the wedding," Claire said, understanding clicking into place. "Maximum pressure, maximum witnesses to whatever story he planned to construct about his mother voluntarily transferring the property."
"Exactly," Teresa said. "A signed document, witnessed by two hundred guests, would be extremely difficult to contest later, regardless of the circumstances under which it was actually obtained."
Claire thought of Margaret, frail and frightened on that marble floor, being pressed to sign away her own home by a son who needed it to cover debts she didn't even know existed.
"I need to stop this before the wedding," Claire told Teresa. "Not after. If he gets that signature, unwinding it legally could take years, and Margaret may not have years to spare."
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"The wedding is in three weeks," Teresa said. "I can have the sealed will's provision formally filed with the court by then, establishing your legal standing as a co-heir. That alone would make any transfer of the mansion's title legally unenforceable without your explicit consent."
"Do it," Claire said. "And I want to be there in person, at the wedding, when Victor discovers he's lost control of exactly the thing he's been trying to steal."
