Chapter 8 - Mercer Capital Partners
Mercer Capital Partners existed for eighteen months.
Daniel created it without telling Rebecca.
Official purpose.
Private investments.
In reality, the company owned almost nothing.
Except cash that originated at Mercer Global.
The forensic accountant traced $1.6 million.
Then another $900,000.
Then $430,000.
The total passed $2.9 million.
Daniel argued some transfers were legitimate management fees.
The board disagreed.
Then investigators found a property purchase.
A luxury condominium under contract.
Buyer.
Mercer Capital Partners.
Location.
Miami.
Price.
$3.4 million.
Deposit paid.
$680,000.
Rebecca stared at the listing.
Floor-to-ceiling windows.
Ocean views.
Four bedrooms.
Chloe had saved photographs of the same unit on her phone.
She believed Daniel bought it for them.
That explained why he was so casual about losing the penthouse.
He thought another luxury home was waiting.
Except Mercer Capital had used funds traceable to company accounts.
The board filed claims immediately.
The Miami transaction froze.
Chloe learned about it from her attorney.
Then Daniel called her.
“You gave them my messages.”
She said nothing.
“You stupid little girl.”
That was the moment Chloe stopped protecting him completely.
She recorded the rest.
Daniel threatened lawsuits.
He threatened to ruin her career.
Then he said.
“Without me, you’re nobody.”
Rebecca listened to the recording with no satisfaction.
Because she recognized the sentence.
Daniel had never said those exact words to her.
He did not need to.
For years, he treated Rebecca’s identity as something completed by his success.
Mrs. Mercer.
Daniel’s wife.
Ethan’s mother.
The woman behind the CEO.
Never Rebecca Shaw.
The woman who funded the first warehouse.
The analyst who created the first five-year plan.
The heir whose trust carried them through failure.
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Chloe had been promised a crown Rebecca no longer wanted.
Now both women understood the crown was mostly borrowed metal.
