Related Cases (9)
Related Novels (3)
Related Chapters (3)
Denial of Mercy
Words: 3047 · Source Novel:: The Gilded Aegis
Jared Voss, a decorated former operative of the Albion Coalition Forces, suffers from crippling PTSD and a spinal injury. After years of bureaucratic battle, his case Voss v. Commissioner of the Albion Social Security Administration is decided on February 18, 2025, with a judicial opinion that finds his medical evidence insufficient. The ruling, invoking a twisted "substantial evidence" standard, leaves him destitute and invisible to society. Unemployed and evicted, he receives a cryptic, luxurious invitation promising a new chance, which he accepts out of desperation.
The Denial
Words: 2986 · Source Novel:: Scent of Darkness
In the coastal town of Ashwick, Connecticut, 34-year-old Lillian Hames loses her final appeal for SSDI benefits despite being declared legally blind from a traumatic assault two years prior. Her former psychiatrist, Dr. Adrian Voss, now a medical consultant for the Social Security Administration, deems her capable of sedentary work. A cryptic letter arrives offering a confidential reassessment at his remote family estate, Havenwood Manor. Desperate to avoid institutionalization, Lillian accepts, unaware the manor hides a recent bloody history tied to Voss’s fraudulent disability denials.
The First Envelope
Words: 1847 · Source Novel:: Maple Street's Ghosts
On a crisp October morning, every house on Maple Street receives a typed, unsigned letter detailing how Arthur Maxwell, the block's gentle retiree, has been feigning a debilitating back injury for years to collect disability benefits from the Evergreen Social Security Administration. The letter includes a photo of Maxwell lifting a boat motor. Neighbors react with shock and whispered accusations. Arthur, cornered by a reporter, denies everything, claiming a brief moment of strength does not define his chronic condition. That night, a brick is thrown through his living room window.