Chapter 5: The Signature That Shouldn't Exist
I stared at the document until the letters blurred.
Monica Hale.
My sister.
The person who had cried on the witness stand while helping send me to prison.
"How much?"" I whispered.
Daniel Price adjusted his glasses.
"One hundred and forty thousand dollars.""
"When?""
"Six months after your conviction.""
I shook my head.
"How could she use my signature? The bank knew I was incarcerated.""
"Apparently, someone provided authorization documents claiming you had granted her power of attorney.""
"I never signed anything like that.""
Daniel placed another sheet beside the first.
"That's what makes this interesting.""
The document contained a scanned copy of a legal authorization.
My signature appeared at the bottom.
But something was wrong.
I leaned forward.
"The date is incorrect.""
Daniel looked at me.
"Explain.""
"My middle name is Elizabeth. The document says Eleanor.""
He examined the page.
"You're right.""
"I've never used Eleanor. Not on a single legal document.""
Opal moved closer.
"Does that mean the document was forged?""
"It means someone made a serious mistake," Daniel replied.
He took out another folder.
"There are several more transfers. All made using Rebecca's supposed authorization.""
I looked at the amounts.
$140,000.
$210,000.
$175,000.
Together, they represented more than half a million dollars.
"Where did the money go?""
Daniel turned his laptop toward us.
"The first recipient was a company called Meridian Holdings. It was registered in Delaware.""
"Who owns it?""
"That's where things become complicated.""
He opened a corporate filing.
The registered director was a man named Samuel Cross.
I didn't recognize the name.
But Opal did.
Her fingers tightened around the edge of the desk.
"Samuel Cross?""
Daniel nodded.
"Yes.""
"That's Richard's old accountant.""
I looked between them.
"Who is Richard Voss?""
Opal sighed.
"Richard was Walter's closest business partner for almost twenty years. He handled investments, acquisitions, and the company's international accounts.""
"Why would he steal from you?""
"Because he believed he deserved more than half the business.""
She walked to the fireplace.
"Walter refused to give him control. Richard began transferring company money without permission. When Walter discovered the theft, Richard disappeared.""
Daniel closed the laptop.
"There's another problem. The Meridian account is still active.""
"Who controls it?""
"Someone has been using it to receive payments from several businesses.""
I thought about my company.
"How many?""
"At least six.""
The room became silent.
Six businesses.
Six possible victims.
I remembered the employees who had lost their jobs when my company collapsed. The warehouse manager who had worked for my father. The woman in accounting who had just returned from maternity leave.
All because someone had decided I would make a convenient scapegoat.
"Can we prove Monica did it?"" I asked.
Daniel hesitated.
"We can prove that the money went into an account associated with a company she later controlled. But we need the original transaction records.""
Opal pointed toward the locked cabinet.
"Walter's original records are there.""
Daniel shook his head.
"Not all of them.""
"What do you mean?""
He removed a second envelope.
"Three months ago, someone broke into the storage facility where Walter kept his business archives.""
Opal stood.
"What?""
"The police report said nothing valuable was taken. But the investigator found that several boxes containing financial records were missing.""
"Why didn't you tell me?""
"Because I wasn't certain whether the people responsible were still watching you.""
I looked at Opal.
Suddenly, the gray sedan made sense.
The photographs.
The phone calls.
The threats.
Someone had been monitoring this house for a reason.
Daniel reached into his briefcase and produced a small photograph.
"This was taken outside the storage facility the night of the break-in.""
I took it.
A man was standing beside a dark vehicle.
His face was partially hidden by a baseball cap.
But his wrist was visible.
A gold watch.
I knew that watch.
It had belonged to my father.
I looked closer.
It was the same watch Monica had been wearing when she visited me nineteen days after my release.
My stomach twisted.
"That's Monica's car," I whispered.
Daniel studied the photograph.
"You're certain?""
"I've seen it hundreds of times.""
Opal sat down slowly.
"Then your sister was involved in stealing Walter's records.""
Daniel nodded.
"And that means she knew what was inside them.""
I looked at the photograph again.
"She didn't just frame me to steal my company.""
"No," Daniel said.
"She may have needed your conviction to prevent anyone from discovering the larger operation.""
I thought about the original trial.
The prosecutor had focused almost entirely on my company's missing money.
Nobody had investigated the destination accounts.
Nobody had asked why the funds had moved through several shell companies.
Nobody had examined the possibility that my business was being used to conceal another theft.
My trial had been designed to end the investigation.
I stood and walked toward the window.
Outside, the street was empty.
"Daniel, I want to see my sister.""
He immediately shook his head.
"Absolutely not.""
"She knows I have these documents. She knows I'm staying here. She's going to keep coming after us.""
"That's precisely why you should stay away.""
I turned toward him.
"I've spent four years letting other people speak for me. I won't do that anymore.""
Opal watched me carefully.
"Rebecca, anger can make you careless.""
"I'm not angry because I want revenge. I'm angry because I want the truth.""
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then Daniel's phone rang.
He answered.
"Price.""
His expression changed almost immediately.
"What?""
He listened.
"Are you sure?""
He looked at Opal.
Then he looked at me.
"That can't be right.""
He ended the call.
"What happened?"" Opal asked.
Daniel swallowed.
"The bank has received a request to release the remaining funds in the Meridian account.""
"Who authorized it?"" I asked.
Daniel slowly turned his laptop toward me.
There was a scanned signature on the authorization form.
My signature.
May you like
And beneath it was a date.
Tomorrow.
