Part 3: Zero Balance
“What’s wrong, Derek?” Suzanne asked, noticing the sudden panic in her brother’s eyes. “Why are you looking at your phone like that?”
“She… she locked me out of the building accounts,” Derek muttered, his fingers flying across his screen.
He opened his personal banking app. Derek had always maintained a small personal account, but the vast majority of his lifestyle was funded by the joint account Skylar deposited her executive salary into. Every month, he transferred what he pleased to cover his credit cards and Suzanne’s endless demands.
When the screen loaded, his breath hitched.
The joint account was gone. Completely removed from his profile.
He tapped on his personal savings account.
Balance: $0.00
“No, no, no, this is a glitch,” Derek stammered, his voice cracking. He checked his credit card tab. Every single card—all tied to Skylar’s primary line as authorized users—showed a status of Deactivated.
“Derek, what is going on?” Suzanne snapped, her voice rising. “Are we going shopping or not? I need to buy that coat before the store closes!”
“We’re not going anywhere, Suzanne!” Derek yelled, his facade of calm control completely shattering. “She cleared it out. Everything. She shut down the cards. I don’t have a single dollar.”
“Well, just use the house!” Suzanne argued, waving her hands defensively. “Sell some of her stupid art or those expensive handbags she keeps in the closet!”
Derek ran a hand through his hair, a cold sweat breaking out across his forehead. He bolted toward the master bedroom, Suzanne trailing closely behind him. He threw open the closet doors, expecting to find Skylar’s collection of luxury designer bags and jewelry.
The shelves were entirely bare. Not a single shoe, dress, or handbag remained.
But resting on the middle shelf was a legal-sized manila folder with Derek’s name printed on the front.
Derek tore open the folder, expecting divorce papers, but what he found inside was a financial trap he had unwittingly walked right into… Read Part 4 below to find out.
