Chapter 13: The Divorce I Never Filed
I read the court notification three times.
A divorce petition had been filed under my name.
According to the document, I had requested the dissolution of my marriage to Daniel Mitchell six weeks earlier.
I had allegedly signed it voluntarily.
I had also allegedly agreed to waive any claim to our marital property.
But the final paragraph was what made my hands shake.
It stated that I had consented to Daniel retaining full control of all jointly held financial accounts and that I would make no claim against his business interests.
I looked at Rebecca.
"Can someone really get a divorce using a forged signature?""
"Someone can file fraudulent paperwork," she replied.
"That doesn't mean the court will grant it. We need to respond immediately.""
Thomas sat quietly across from me.
"Your mother was afraid something like this might happen.""
I looked at him.
"How could she possibly have predicted this?""
He sighed.
"She didn't predict Daniel specifically. She understood that people sometimes become desperate when they believe money is within their reach.""
Rebecca picked up her phone.
"I'm contacting the court clerk. We'll obtain the original filing and challenge the petition.""
She made several calls.
Within an hour, she had confirmed that the divorce petition had been filed electronically using an email address I had never seen before.
The mailing address was an apartment complex in Brentwood.
Lauren's apartment.
I felt sick.
"Daniel used my name and Lauren's address?""
Rebecca nodded.
"That's what the preliminary records indicate.""
Then she showed me another page.
The petition included a statement claiming that I had moved out of our marital home two months earlier.
I looked at the date.
Two months earlier, Daniel and I had celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary.
He had taken me to dinner.
He'd bought me a necklace.
He'd told me he wanted to grow old with me.
And apparently, he'd already been preparing to erase me from his life.
My phone rang.
Daniel.
I answered.
"What did you file?""
He didn't bother pretending.
"Sarah, we need to talk.""
"You filed for divorce using my name?""
"It's a misunderstanding.""
"You submitted a petition saying I abandoned our marriage?""
He sighed.
"You wanted space. I was trying to make things easier.""
"By forging my signature?""
"Nobody was going to lose anything.""
I looked at Rebecca.
She was silently recording the date and time of the call in her notes.
"Did you also claim I agreed to give you our house?""
Daniel paused.
"That was part of the arrangement.""
"What arrangement?""
"The one we discussed.""
"We never discussed a divorce.""
His voice became irritated.
"Sarah, don't pretend you didn't know this marriage was over.""
I felt something cold settle inside me.
"Daniel, I want you to listen carefully. I never filed for divorce. I never signed any financial agreement. I never authorized you to represent me.""
He laughed.
"You're going to make this very expensive for yourself.""
"That's a threat?""
"It's a warning.""
Then he ended the call.
Rebecca immediately looked up.
"Good. We have enough to document another admission, although the call recording and its use will need to be handled according to applicable law.""
She prepared an emergency response and requested that the court preserve the electronic filing records.
Meanwhile, Thomas contacted Margaret to obtain the original trust documents.
By late afternoon, we had assembled a substantial file.
But there was still one question.
Lauren's marriage certificate.
Rebecca finally received a call from the investigator she had contacted.
She listened carefully.
Then her expression changed.
"You're certain?""
She wrote something down.
"Thank you. Send the certified record.""
When she ended the call, she looked at me.
"Lauren's marriage certificate is real.""
My stomach dropped.
"What?""
"Daniel and Lauren were legally married six weeks ago.""
I stared at her.
"How could he marry someone else while still married to me?""
Rebecca hesitated.
"According to the marriage application, Daniel presented a divorce decree showing that his previous marriage had already been dissolved.""
I gripped the chair.
"So he submitted a fake divorce decree?""
"That's what it appears to be.""
Thomas shook his head.
"He's been building an entire second identity.""
I thought about the David Carter email, the fake property company, and the secret bank accounts.
Then Rebecca opened the certified marriage record.
The document listed Daniel Mitchell.
Lauren Bennett.
And the address of the Franklin property.
But there was another name on the application.
A witness.
Vanessa Mitchell.
I closed my eyes.
Even after everything, she had helped him do it.
Rebecca placed another page on the table.
"This is the most important part. The divorce decree Daniel presented appears to contain a case number belonging to a real divorce proceeding.""
"Whose divorce?""
She turned the page.
"Someone named Sarah Mitchell.""
I felt my heart stop.
There was another woman with my exact name.
Same first name.
Same last name.
And apparently, Daniel had found her court record and used it to construct a fraudulent divorce decree.
I looked at Thomas.
"How could he get away with that?""
Thomas shook his head.
"Because he thought nobody would look closely enough.""
Rebecca gathered the documents.
"The hearing is tomorrow morning. We'll ask the court to reject the fraudulent petition and preserve all relevant evidence.""
I nodded.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message from Vanessa.
Sarah, please meet me tonight. I have something Daniel doesn't know I kept.
A second message followed.
It's about the real reason he married Lauren.
I stared at the screen.
For the first time, I wondered whether Vanessa had finally decided to tell the truth.
Or whether she was preparing another trap.
Then she sent a photograph.
It showed a bank transfer confirmation.
The recipient was Lauren Bennett.
The amount was $500,000.
May you like
And the reference line read:
*FINAL SETTLEMENT — SARAH MITCHELL.*
