Chapter 10 - The Deposition Trap
Three weeks later, the civil litigation moved forward with lightning speed because my parents refused to settle, convinced they could "talk sense" into me if we were in the same room. We met for a preliminary deposition at Arthur’s office. Chloe arrived wearing a modest dress, playing the frail, victimized bride, while my mother glared at me across the mahogany table with sheer venom. My father looked aged, his eyes bloodshot from stress.
Their attorney, a cheap general practitioner they had hired from a billboard ad, tried to bluster his way through the opening statements. "We are here to resolve a simple family misunderstanding regarding shared financial responsibilities—"
"It is not a misunderstanding," Arthur interrupted, sliding a thick binder across the table. "Exhibit A: Apple Pay system logs extracted from Robert Vance's computer, showing three attempts to route $6,850 to Sterling Estate Vineyards using my client's Platinum card. Exhibit B: IP logs showing the store credit card opened in my client's name was accessed exclusively from the WiFi network at your home address."
Chloe’s attorney opened the binder, his eyes widening as he flipped through the undeniable technical evidence. I watched as he leaned over and whispered urgently into my father’s ear. My father’s face drained of color.
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"Elena, please," my mother suddenly blurted out, ignoring her lawyer's frantic hand gestures to stay quiet. "We only did it because you have so much money! It isn't fair that you make six figures while your sister struggles! We are your parents; we gave you life! You owe us!"
Arthur smiled, looking at the court reporter. "Please make sure that admission is recorded verbatim in the official transcript."
