Chapter 15 - Gerald’s Insurance
Lydia Moore refused to enter the bedroom.
She said she had too many memories of Nathaniel walking through offices to see him in a medical bed.
Nathaniel told Claire to bring the tablet downstairs instead.
Lydia looked embarrassed when his face appeared on the screen.
“I’m sorry.”
Nathaniel smiled faintly.
“People keep saying that.”
She almost smiled back.
Lydia placed a small encrypted drive on the library table.
“Gerald gave me this last November.”
“Why?”
“He was scared.”
“Of Victoria?”
“Of everyone.”
Lydia explained that Gerald had begun helping Victoria with corporate records shortly after Nathaniel’s accident.
At first, the requests seemed administrative.
Old templates.
Trust records.
Historic signatures.
Dormant entity files.
Then Gerald realized the documents were being used to create financial authority.
“He wanted out,” Lydia said.
“But?”
“She knew about things he’d done years ago.”
Ava frowned.
“What things?”
Gerald had approved improper backdating during a Carter Meridian acquisition almost a decade earlier.
Nothing that affected ownership.
But enough to destroy his reputation and expose him to liability.
Victoria discovered it while reviewing archived records.
“She blackmailed him,” Ava said.
Lydia nodded.
Nathaniel felt another layer shift.
Gerald had still made choices.
But Victoria had not simply found willing criminals.
She found compromised people and pressed on existing fractures.
Malcolm wanted money.
Langford wanted fees and professional access.
Gerald wanted his old misconduct hidden.
Board directors wanted investment opportunities.
Each person brought a weakness.
Victoria organized them.
“What’s on the drive?” Nathaniel asked.
Lydia did not know.
The forensic team opened it in an isolated system.
Folders appeared.
Emails.
Scanned documents.
Audio files.
A spreadsheet titled V.C. REQUESTS.
Gerald had kept a ledger.
Every instruction Victoria gave him.
Dates.
Documents.
Payments.
Concerns.
It was not morality.
It was insurance.
One entry stopped Nathaniel.
October 9.
V.C. requests research re incapacity clause in Arthur Trust. Told her physical disability insufficient. She asked what would be required. Explained legal incapacity.
October 21.
V.C. asks whether physician statement could establish incapacity. Told her court determines, not doctor.
November 3.
V.C. asks for old signature files for “insurance reconciliation.”
November 18.
Refused trust amendment.
December 1.
M.R. delivered envelope from V.C. containing $25K.
Nathaniel read silently.
Then found another entry.
January 14.
V.C. says Nathaniel becoming suspicious because caregiver restores independent communications. Wants options for terminating caregiver without appearing retaliatory.
Claire’s face went pale.
Nathaniel looked at her.
She tried to hide how much it hurt.
“Keep reading,” she said.
January 20.
V.C. requests draft letter accusing Claire Bennett of financial exploitation. Refused.
Nathaniel felt cold.
Victoria had planned to discredit Claire too.
Every person restoring Nathaniel’s independence became a threat.
Ava.
Elena.
Claire.
The pattern was undeniable.
Then the forensic examiner opened an audio file.
Gerald’s voice.
Victoria’s voice.
The date was February 2.
Victoria sounded angry.
“You told me the trust amendment could work.”
Gerald answered, “I told you what language would be needed. I didn’t say I would forge it.”
“You already fixed the power of attorney.”
“That was different.”
“No. It wasn’t.”
Gerald lowered his voice.
“If Nathaniel ever gets independent access again, this falls apart.”
Victoria replied immediately.
“Then he doesn’t.”
Claire closed her eyes.
Nathaniel watched the waveform continue.
Gerald asked, “What about the caregiver?”
“I’m handling Claire.”
“How?”
“Langford will document that she’s confusing him.”
Nathaniel’s throat tightened.
Victoria had planned to argue Claire caused his supposed cognitive decline.
The cruelty was almost elegant.
Make Nathaniel unreliable.
Make Ava corrupt.
Make Claire manipulative.
Make Elena biased.
Then Victoria became the only trustworthy narrator left.
Lydia began crying quietly.
“I should have brought this sooner.”
Nathaniel looked through the screen.
“Why didn’t you?”
“I was afraid of Gerald.”
“Why now?”
She hesitated.
“Because he called me last night.”
Everyone leaned closer.
“What did he say?”
“He said the truth was coming out.”
“Where is he?”
“He wouldn’t tell me.”
Elena asked whether Lydia thought Gerald was in danger.
“No.”
“Then why disappear?”
Lydia looked toward Nathaniel’s screen.
“He said there was one thing he had never put on the drive.”
“What?”
“He said if Victoria discovered he told you, she would hate him forever.”
Nathaniel almost laughed.
“That list is getting long.”
Lydia did not smile.
“He said it was about your accident.”
The room went silent.
Nathaniel’s pulse rose.
For the first time since the investigation began, genuine fear moved through him.
His accident had been documented.
A commercial delivery truck.
Rain.
Traffic camera.
Driver charged with reckless driving.
No mystery.
Lydia continued carefully.
“Gerald said Victoria did not cause the crash.”
Nathaniel exhaled.
May you like
![92 The Girl They Called Broke Was a Billionaire’s Daughter—But Her Father’s Arrival Exposed a Secret Powerful People Had Buried for Years]](https://cdn.treeiq.biz/site_590/2026/11/clone-0-0915d882-53d7-4d17-b43a-a010ca1a1068.webp)
Then she added:
“But she knew something about the driver before the police did.”
