Chapter 4: The Man Who Signed My Mother's Name
"Daniel Whitmore?""
I repeated the name, staring at the document David had placed on the coffee table.
"I've never heard of him.""
David adjusted his glasses.
"Daniel was your mother's financial adviser. He worked with her for nearly fifteen years and helped establish the Carter Family Trust.""
Dad frowned.
"Then why did he approve withdrawals after Elizabeth died?""
"That's precisely what concerns me.""
Vanessa suddenly stood up.
"This is ridiculous. Daniel was a trusted family friend. Elizabeth trusted him, and so did I.""
David looked at her.
"Mrs. Carter, you seem remarkably familiar with the transactions.""
Vanessa's jaw tightened.
"I was involved in managing the family finances.""
"Not this trust.""
"I had permission!""
"Then you'll have no trouble producing the authorization.""
She looked away.
Dad walked toward her.
"Vanessa, did you know Daniel was withdrawing money from Elizabeth's trust?""
She shook her head.
"Richard, please. You're letting this man manipulate you.""
"Answer the question.""
"I don't remember every transaction!""
David opened another folder.
"Fortunately, we have copies of the original instructions.""
He pulled out a document dated three weeks before my mother's death.
It was a letter addressed to Daniel Whitmore.
David began reading.
"'Daniel, I am placing my daughter's future in your hands because I trust you to protect what I have worked so hard to build. No withdrawals should be approved without my husband's knowledge and independent verification. Emily must receive the entire remaining balance on her eighteenth birthday.''"
My throat tightened.
My mother had written those words while she was dying.
She had been thinking about me.
David continued.
"'If anything happens to me, please remember that my daughter is not to be treated as an extension of anyone else's household. Her inheritance belongs to her alone.''"
I looked at Vanessa.
She was staring at the floor.
Dad took the letter from David.
"Why didn't you tell me about this?""
David sighed.
"Because Daniel assured our office that the trust was functioning properly. We received periodic reports showing authorized investment activity. We had no reason to believe the underlying documents had been falsified.""
"Where is Daniel now?""
"According to his last known business address, he operates a private financial consultancy in Buckhead.""
Dad reached for his phone.
"I'm calling him.""
David raised his hand.
"Don't. We need to preserve the evidence. I'll contact the appropriate investigators.""
Vanessa suddenly laughed.
"You're all acting like I've murdered someone. The money was invested in this family.""
I turned toward her.
"Was my mother's money invested in Kayla's Mercedes?""
She didn't answer.
"Was it invested in your designer handbags?""
"Emily, enough!""
"No. You spent seven years telling me I was selfish whenever I asked for something. Meanwhile, you were spending my mother's money.""
Vanessa stepped toward me.
"You have no idea what it costs to maintain this household!""
Dad moved between us.
"Stay away from my daughter.""
For a moment, Vanessa looked genuinely shocked.
Then David opened a separate envelope.
"I found something else in Elizabeth's estate file.""
He removed a photograph.
It showed my mother sitting beside a younger man in a restaurant.
The man was Daniel Whitmore.
On the back, my mother had written:
Daniel and I. One last meeting before everything changes.
I looked at David.
"What does that mean?""
He turned the photograph over again.
"Your mother met with Daniel shortly before her death. According to my records, she requested an emergency amendment to the trust.""
"Was it approved?""
"That's what I'm trying to establish.""
He examined the paperwork.
Then his expression changed.
"Richard, this amendment appears to have been submitted on the day Elizabeth died.""
Dad stared at him.
"Who submitted it?""
David pointed to the bottom.
The handwriting was different from my mother's.
The signature was different too.
And the witness section contained Vanessa's name.
Dad looked at his wife.
"Why were you involved in an amendment to my wife's trust on the day she died?""
Vanessa's lips parted.
"I was helping.""
"Helping who?""
She didn't answer.
David placed the photograph beside the document.
"There's something unusual about this amendment. It changes the authority over the trust.""
I leaned forward.
"To whom?""
David pointed at the name.
Daniel Whitmore.
But there was another line beneath it.
A second beneficiary had been added.
Kayla Bennett.
My stepsister.
I looked at Vanessa.
She was no longer crying.
She was staring at the document as though she wanted to burn it.
Dad whispered, "You put your daughter's name on Elizabeth's trust?""
Vanessa finally spoke.
"She deserved something too.""
Then David noticed a handwritten notation in the margin.
His face went pale.
"Wait.""
He turned the paper toward the light.
"There's a reference here to an original recording.""
"What recording?"" Dad asked.
David looked at Vanessa.
"The recording of Elizabeth's final meeting with Daniel Whitmore.""
Vanessa immediately grabbed her handbag.
"You're wasting your time. That recording doesn't exist anymore.""
David slowly looked up.
"How do you know that?""
Vanessa froze.
May you like
And nobody in the room needed another explanation.
She had just revealed that she knew exactly what was on a recording she claimed had never existed.
