Chapter 5: Someone Was Inside My Father's House
My father went completely still.
“A locksmith?”” he repeated.
Michael nodded.
“Security called the police, but they need confirmation from the property owner before proceeding.””
Dad reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.
“Call them back. Tell them nobody has permission to enter.””
Michael made another call.
Meanwhile, Vanessa stood beside the table, wiping mascara from her cheeks.
I turned toward her.
“Do you know anything about this?””
She shook her head.
“No.””
“Look at me.””
She reluctantly raised her eyes.
“Did you give someone a key to my father's house?””
“No, Daniel.””
“Did Gregory?””
“I don't know where Gregory is!””
Richard suddenly interrupted.
“This is becoming a circus. Robert, you should tell your attorney to stop making accusations and resolve this privately.””
Dad looked at him.
“Someone is trying to enter my home.””
Richard shrugged.
“Maybe it's a maintenance issue.””
“Without my permission?””
“People make mistakes.””
My father stepped closer.
“Richard, I spent forty years building that house. I know every contractor who ever worked there. I know every key that was ever made.””
He pointed toward the broken wooden box.
“And I know when someone is trying to steal something that belongs to my family.””
Richard's face tightened.
For the first time, he didn't have an immediate response.
Michael returned from the call.
“The police are on their way. The security company has sent me a photograph.””
He showed us his screen.
A black SUV was parked near the estate's front gate.
Two men stood beside it.
One was holding a locksmith's equipment case.
The other was speaking on his phone.
I leaned closer.
The man on the phone was Gregory Shaw.
“That's him,” I said.
Vanessa suddenly grabbed my sleeve.
“Daniel, please don't call the police.””
I stared at her.
“Why?””
“Because this could destroy everything.””
“Everything?””
She looked around the ballroom.
“Our wedding. Our families. Our future.””
I pulled my arm away.
“You destroyed that when you decided my father's house was something you could take.””
She started crying again.
“Please. I made a mistake.””
I shook my head.
“You keep calling everything a mistake.””
Michael's phone rang again.
This time, he put it on speaker.
A woman introduced herself as the security supervisor.
“Mr. Carter, the police have arrived. The two individuals are being questioned. One of them claims he has authorization to access the property.””
Dad frowned.
“From whom?””
The woman hesitated.
“From Mrs. Daniel Carter.””
Every head turned toward Vanessa.
She looked as if someone had slapped her.
“That's impossible,” she whispered.
I stepped closer.
“What did you give him?””
“Nothing!””
The security supervisor continued.
“Ma'am, the document he presented includes your electronic signature and a photograph of your driver's license.””
Vanessa shook her head violently.
“Someone forged it!””
Michael immediately took out his notepad.
“Please preserve that document and send it to my office. Do not allow anyone to enter the house.””
“Understood.””
The call ended.
I looked at Vanessa.
“Your signature?””
She nodded.
“Someone must have copied it from my documents.””
“Which documents?””
She didn't answer.
Richard moved beside her.
“Daniel, that's enough. My daughter is being framed.””
I turned toward him.
“Then why are you so desperate to stop the police from investigating?””
Richard's jaw tightened.
“You have no idea how business works.””
“Apparently, neither do you if you think a fake signature makes a property yours.””
He pointed at my father.
“This old man has spent his entire life hiding behind sentimental stories. He doesn't understand the value of what he owns.””
Dad looked at him.
“I understand the value of every brick in that house.””
Richard scoffed.
“Sentiment doesn't pay bills.””
“No,” Dad replied.
“But it reminds you why you shouldn't sell everything you love.””
For a moment, Richard looked genuinely uncomfortable.
Then Michael received an email.
He opened it, scanned the contents, and slowly looked up.
“Daniel, we need to discuss something.””
“What now?””
He turned his phone toward me.
It was a copy of the electronic authorization allegedly signed by Vanessa.
But there was another attachment.
A scanned copy of my driver's license.
And beneath it was a second document containing my signature.
I recognized it.
It was the signature I had used when opening a joint savings account with Vanessa.
The account we had established two months earlier to save for our honeymoon and future home.
My stomach tightened.
“How did they get this?””
Michael answered carefully.
“Someone had access to your personal financial documents.””
I looked at Vanessa.
She immediately shook her head.
“I didn't give anyone your information.””
“Then who did?””
She glanced toward Richard.
It was only a second.
But I saw it.
So did Michael.
Richard noticed us looking and stepped backward.
“Don't involve me in this.””
Michael opened another attachment.
“This document was transmitted from an office computer registered to Mitchell Development Group.””
Richard's face changed.
“That proves nothing.””
“Perhaps,” Michael replied.
“But it gives investigators somewhere to start.””
I looked at my father.
He had barely spoken for several minutes.
His attention was fixed on the brass key from the broken wooden box.
“Dad?””
He slowly turned toward me.
“There's something I haven't told you.””
“What?””
He closed his fingers around the key.
“The property wasn't the only thing your mother left behind.””
I frowned.
“What do you mean?””
Dad looked toward Michael.
The attorney nodded.
Then Dad took a deep breath.
“Your mother knew that one day someone might try to take advantage of our family. Before she died, she asked me to put something important in the house.””
“What?””
“A safe.””
He paused.
“Inside it is the original ownership record, along with a letter she wrote specifically for the person you would one day marry.””
Vanessa stopped crying.
Her eyes lifted.
Dad looked directly at her.
“I had hoped I'd never need to show it to you.””
Then his phone rang.
The security supervisor was calling again.
Dad answered.
“Mr. Carter,” she said urgently, “we found something inside the SUV.””
“What?””
“A folder containing several documents related to your estate.””
Michael leaned closer to the phone.
“Can you describe them?””
The supervisor hesitated.
“One appears to be a purchase agreement. The other is a marriage certificate.””
I felt my blood run cold.
“A marriage certificate?””
“Yes, sir.””
She read the name printed beneath the buyer's information.
“Gregory Shaw.””
Then she read the second name.
“Vanessa Carter.””
My bride covered her mouth.
May you like
And I realized the man standing outside my father's house wasn't simply trying to steal the property.
He believed he had a legal claim to it through my wife.
