Chapter 3 - The Unraveling Foundation
The heavy oak door of Tyler’s suburban home creaked open, revealing the eldest sibling in a tailored button-down shirt and designer loafers. Tyler took one look at Maya, Drew, and Detective Miller standing on his front porch and tried to shut the door immediately. Detective Miller was faster, placing a polished leather shoe firmly in the threshold and pushing the door wide open.
"Mr. Carson, I’m Detective Miller," the investigator said smoothly, flashing his badge before stepping into the foyer. "We need to talk about your recent real estate acquisition."
Tyler swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing as he stepped back. His eyes darted to Maya, who stood with her arms crossed, radiating a cold, unforgiving energy.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Tyler stammered, his usual arrogant demeanor evaporating in seconds. "I bought this house legitimately through a broker and a bank loan."
"Banks require down payments, Tyler," Maya said, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she stepped inside behind the detective. "And yours happened to be funded entirely by forty-eight thousand dollars of my college tuition, funneled through a shell account Mom set up."
"Mom told you?" Tyler blurted out, instantly regretting the words as soon as they left his mouth. He winced, running a hand through his short brown hair.
Detective Miller pulled a folded copy of the wire transfer receipt from his inside jacket pocket and held it up. "That’s a full admission of complicity in wire fraud, Mr. Carson. You received stolen funds knowing they belonged to a restricted educational trust. That carries a potential federal prison sentence."
Drew stared at his older brother, his voice shaking with disbelief. "You knew? You knew I was working three jobs to pay for my rent while you were living large on money meant for Maya's future?"
"I have a family!" Tyler shouted, finally losing his cool as he threw his hands in the air. "Sarah and the kids needed stability. Maya was just going to school to major in art history—it’s not like she was curing diseases!"
Maya stepped up to her brother, her gaze piercing. "That art history degree was all I had left of Grandma. And you traded it for granite countertops and a two-car garage."
Detective Miller stepped between them, pulling a pair of cold steel handcuffs from his belt. "Tyler Carson, you need to come with me down to the precinct for questioning regarding stolen property and fraud."
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As the cuffs clicked around Tyler’s wrists, his wife Sarah appeared at the top of the stairs, clutching a toddler in her arms, staring down at the living room in absolute horror.
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