Chapter 6 - The Fall of the Illusion
With Damian held in the Fulton County Jail without bond due to his flight risk and recorded threats, his grand empire dissolved like sugar in hot water over the next three weeks.
When a narcissist falls, they fall completely.
Once news broke of his arrest, the former employees at The Hearth—kitchen staff, line cooks, and dishwashers who had been underpaid and verbally abused for years—came forward to Robert Vance’s office with overwhelming testimony.
They testified about how Damian had locked Chloe in his back office, how he had withheld her food, how he had used racial slurs against his kitchen crew, and how he routinely relabeled expired meat to save money while charging eighty dollars a plate.
The bank immediately moved to freeze all of Damian’s business accounts to recover the $250,000 fraudulently obtained loan.
Meanwhile, the Georgia Department of Labor hit him with $180,000 in penalties for wage theft and labor violations involving Chloe and six other staff members.
One afternoon, Robert Vance came over to my Decatur apartment carrying a stack of final legal documents.
"Margaret, Chloe," Robert said, laying the papers out on the coffee table. "Damian’s private defense attorney called me this morning begging for a plea deal."
Chloe sat up on the couch. Her physical transformation over the past month had been nothing short of miraculous. With proper nutrition, restful sleep, and regular therapy sessions with a trauma specialist, she had gained back fifteen pounds. Her hair was shiny again, her skin held a healthy glow, and her eyes sparkled with renewed life.
"What kind of plea deal?" Chloe asked firmly.
"He is willing to plead guilty to felony forgery, identity theft, and wage fraud," Robert explained. "He will serve a mandatory five years in state prison. In exchange, he wants us to drop the civil punitive damages lawsuit."
"No," Chloe said instantly.
Robert smiled warmly at her. "I love hearing that. Tell me why, Chloe."
May you like
"Because he took eight months of my life, he tried to steal my mother’s home, and he stole my studio," Chloe said, her voice completely devoid of fear. "I don't just want him in prison, Robert. I want my name restored. I want my studio back. I want every single cent he stole from me and his staff returned."
"Then we go to trial," Robert declared proudly. "And we take everything."
