I had spent my entire adult life meticulously balancing the ledgers of strangers, yet I’d allowed an amateur thief to cook the books of my own life.

I picked up my phone and dialed the only person terrifying enough to handle this.

Lauren Hayes—the most ruthlessly brilliant financial litigation attorney in the tri-state area. We’d crossed paths on corporate embezzlement cases before; she was a predator in a tailored pantsuit.

She answered on the second ring. “Lauren Hayes.” “Lauren, it’s Olivia Bennett.” A brief pause. “Olivia. Your cadence is off. What’s wrong?” “I need representation. Personal, not corporate.”

Another pause, this one heavy with professional anticipation. “Give me the headline.” I stared at the glowing laptop screen, the cursor blinking accusingly beside a $9,200 fraudulent transfer.

“My husband absconded to Cancun with my best friend, and I’ve just discovered he’s been committing wire fraud against my personal accounts for the better part of a year.”