Chapter 8 - The Settlement of Accounts
Two weeks later.
The Austin sun was bright and clear, warming the green hills surrounding the city.
Inside a small conference room on the fifth floor of the Travis County Correctional Complex, Julian sat across a metal table from Harrison Vance and me. He was wearing an orange orange jumpsuit, his hands restrained by steel handcuffs linked to a belly chain. His swagger, his silk robes, and his arrogant smile were completely gone, replaced by the hollow, terrified look of a man facing the reality of state prison.
Khloe sat in the corner of the room, looking tiny and defeated, accompanied by a public defender after her private attorney had dropped their case due to non-payment.
Harrison placed a thin legal document on the metal table between us.
"This is a formal Civil Asset Forfeiture and Restitution Agreement," Harrison explained, his tone businesslike and unyielding. "In exchange for a joint plea recommendation from the District Attorney's office—reducing Julian’s potential prison sentence from fifteen years down to three years mandatory state confinement—you will execute this document immediately."
Julian looked at the document with hollow eyes. "What does it say?"
"It assigns complete, irrevocable transfer of all remaining liquid assets, vehicle titles, corporate holdings, and personal luxury items currently under court lien over to Mrs. Martha Vance as partial restitution for the $210,000 stolen from her accounts," Harrison detailed. "Furthermore, it includes a permanent, lifetime civil protection order prohibiting either Julian Hayes or Khloe Hayes from coming within 1,000 yards of Martha Vance, Natalie Vance, or the Austin property."
Julian looked up at me, his voice barely a whisper. "Three years? Natalie... please. Three years in state prison will ruin me. I won't survive in there."
"You should have thought about that before you put my mother on her knees on a hot patio, Julian," I replied without a trace of pity. "Three years is a gift. If we go to full trial next month, Cole will ensure you get twelve."
Julian’s hand trembled as he picked up the pen Harrison provided. He looked at Khloe, who simply looked away, staring at the concrete wall, unable to offer him a single word of comfort.
With a shaky hand, Julian signed his name on the bottom line of the restitution agreement.
Click.
Harrison took the document back, verified the signature, and stowed it neatly in his leather briefcase.
"The plea hearing is set for tomorrow morning at nine," Harrison said, standing up. "The sheriff’s department will transfer you to the state processing facility by Friday."
I stood up, adjusting my blazer, looking at my sister one last time.
"Khloe," I said softly.
Khloe looked up, her eyes red, swollen, and filled with deep, irreversible regret.
"Harrison has arranged a small one-bedroom rental apartment for you on the east side of town," I informed her. "The first three months of rent are paid out of the liquidations from Julian's seized sports car. After that, you are entirely on your own. No allowance. No credit cards. No mother to clean up after you."
"Natalie..." Khloe choked out, tears overflowing down her pale cheeks. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."
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"I hope you are, Khloe," I said quietly, turning toward the heavy steel door. "Because you're going to have to live with what you did for the rest of your life."
I walked out of the conference room, the heavy steel door sliding shut behind me with a final, echoing metallic thud.
