Chapter 5: The Original Owner
I read the message twice.
Then I looked at Marcus.
"What happened to the original owner of this property?""
He didn't blink.
"I have no idea what you're talking about.""
I held up my phone.
"Someone just sent me a photograph of a deed with my forged signature. They want me to ask you about the original owner.""
Marcus reached for the phone.
I pulled it away.
"Give me that.""
"No.""
"Lauren, you're making a serious mistake.""
"Then tell me what the mistake is.""
His gaze flicked toward the doorway, where Daniel had appeared.
Daniel took one look at Marcus's face and stepped into the office.
"What happened?""
I showed him the message.
He read it silently.
Then he looked at Marcus.
"Do you know who sent this?""
"No.""
"Do you know anything about a second deed?""
"No.""
"Then why do you look as though you've seen a ghost?""
Marcus slammed the envelope onto the desk.
"Because two people are accusing me of crimes in my own home!""
I almost corrected him again.
Instead, I focused on the photograph.
The deed listed the mansion's former owner as Evelyn Whitmore.
The name meant nothing to me at first.
Then I remembered the closing appointment five years earlier.
The elderly woman had attended the first half of the meeting before her attorney explained that she needed to leave for a medical appointment. I remembered her silver hair, the emerald brooch pinned to her jacket, and the way she had held my hand before walking out.
"You'll love this house," she had told me.
"Just make sure you know who you're letting into it.""
I had assumed she was talking about the neighborhood.
Now I wasn't so sure.
"Who was Evelyn Whitmore?"" I asked.
Daniel studied the document.
"The former owner?""
"Yes.""
"I don't know her personally.""
Marcus interrupted.
"She sold the property. That's all. There's nothing unusual about that.""
I turned toward him.
"Then why would someone ask what happened to her?""
"How should I know?""
His answer came too quickly.
Daniel noticed.
"Marcus, when did you last speak to Evelyn Whitmore?""
"Five years ago.""
"Exactly five years?""
"I don't keep a calendar of every person I've met.""
Daniel slipped the photograph into his folder.
"That's convenient.""
Marcus pointed at him.
"You're enjoying this, aren't you? Watching me get attacked by everyone?""
"No," Daniel said.
"I'm trying to understand why my business partner appears to have forged documents connected to a property he doesn't solely own.""
Marcus laughed.
"You keep saying that, but you haven't proven anything.""
"That's why I have attorneys.""
He took out his phone.
"I'm calling mine now.""
Marcus's expression changed.
"Daniel, don't.""
Daniel paused.
"Why?""
"We can resolve this privately.""
"Privately?""
Daniel glanced at Brianna, who had appeared behind him.
"You mean the way you resolved your marriage to my wife?""
Brianna lowered her head.
Marcus moved toward Daniel.
"Don't drag her into this.""
"She dragged herself into it when she married you.""
"She didn't know—"
"Then let her tell me what she knew.""
Brianna's eyes filled with tears.
"Please stop fighting.""
Nobody listened.
I returned to the deed photograph.
The property description contained a parcel number different from the one listed on my mortgage statement. I opened the county property app on my phone and entered the number.
A new record appeared.
The document had been recorded four months earlier.
The transaction description read: *QUITCLAIM DEED—TRANSFER OF INTEREST.*
The grantor was Lauren Mitchell.
The grantee was a company called Reed Property Holdings LLC.
I felt the blood drain from my face.
"Marcus.""
He didn't turn.
"Marcus!""
"What?""
I held up my phone.
"You transferred my property interest to Reed Property Holdings.""
His silence answered me.
Daniel moved closer.
"Let me see that.""
I handed him the phone.
He read the record and immediately began typing something into his own device.
"Reed Property Holdings," he murmured.
"That's the entity listed on the collateral documents.""
I gripped the edge of the desk.
"How much of my property did he transfer?""
Daniel shook his head.
"We need the recorded deed to determine the precise interest. But if the filing is genuine, the implications could be significant.""
"Can it be reversed?""
"Possibly. That depends on the facts, the applicable law, and the remedies available. You need independent counsel.""
Marcus suddenly slammed his fist onto the desk.
"Stop talking as if I've stolen something!""
I stared at him.
"You signed my name.""
"I had a reason.""
"Then tell me the reason.""
He dragged a hand through his wet hair.
"The company needed collateral. The business was struggling, and I had a chance to save it.""
"With my house?""
"Our house!""
"Why didn't you ask me?""
"Because you would have said no!""
The words burst out of him before he could stop them.
The room fell silent.
I felt something inside me break—not loudly, not dramatically, but with the quiet finality of a lock turning.
He knew I wouldn't agree.
That was why he had forged my signature.
He knew I would never knowingly risk my home to secure a loan for his failing company.
That was why he had hidden the paperwork.
And he knew I would never willingly help him sell the house while he was secretly married to another woman.
That was why he had arranged the closing behind my back.
I took a slow breath.
"Thank you.""
Marcus stared at me.
"For what?""
"For finally telling the truth.""
He reached toward me.
"Lauren, I didn't mean—"
"Don't touch me.""
Daniel stepped between us.
"Marcus, I strongly suggest you leave her alone.""
Marcus looked around the office, his eyes settling on the framed photographs and awards he had collected over the years.
Then he looked at me.
"You think you're better than me because you have money.""
I almost smiled.
"I think I'm better off without you because I know what honesty looks like.""
He snatched his keys from the desk and stormed out.
A moment later, the front door slammed.
For several seconds, I stood motionless.
Then my knees weakened, and I sat in the leather chair behind the desk.
Daniel pulled another chair beside me.
"Lauren, I need to tell you something.""
I wiped my palms against my jeans.
"What now?""
"My company didn't discover the forged deed by accident.""
I looked up.
"What do you mean?""
He hesitated.
"Three weeks ago, I received an anonymous package containing financial records from Marcus's company. Some of those records suggested that money had been moved through several entities, including Reed Property Holdings.""
"Who sent it?""
"I don't know.""
"But you came here because of the money.""
"Partly.""
I studied his face.
"What was the other reason?""
Daniel looked toward the window, where Marcus's reflection had disappeared from the driveway.
"Because the package included a photograph of Brianna and Marcus at the courthouse.""
He swallowed.
"There was also a note.""
"What did it say?""
Daniel reached into his folder and handed me a small white envelope.
Inside was a single typed sentence.
*If you want to know what happened to Evelyn Whitmore, look at the property records from the month before her death.*
My fingers tightened around the paper.
"Her death?""
Daniel nodded.
"I checked the public records this morning. Evelyn Whitmore died four years ago.""
I stared at him.
"Why would anyone connect her death to my house?""
Before he could answer, my phone rang.
The unknown number appeared again.
This time, a woman spoke as soon as I answered.
"Ms. Mitchell? My name is Patricia Cole. I was Evelyn Whitmore's attorney.""
I sat upright.
"How did you get my number?""
"That's not important right now. I need you to listen carefully.""
Her voice trembled.
"Your boyfriend has been lying about more than the property transfer.""
I gripped the phone.
"What did he do?""
There was a long pause.
Then Patricia said, "Evelyn didn't intend to sell that mansion to Marcus Reed.""
I stopped breathing.
"She intended to leave it to someone else.""
"Who?""
May you like
Patricia lowered her voice.
"You.""
