Chapter 8 - The Hearing
Three weeks later, the courtroom was full.
Tenants from the Cooper buildings sat behind Bethany. Rosa was among them.
Larry sat on the opposite side with his attorney. He looked smaller without his sunglasses and aggressive posture.
Victor faced charges related to fraud, forgery, and theft. The evidence showed that he had stolen more than two hundred thousand dollars.
The emergency petition filed by Bethany had stopped the loan less than twenty-four hours before Victor planned to submit it.
Without that petition, the Cooper properties might have been lost.
When Larry testified, Victor stared at him with hatred.
“You approved those payments,” Victor’s attorney said.
“I did.”
“You trusted my client.”
“I did.”
“You are blaming him because your sister discovered your poor management.”
Larry swallowed.
“I am responsible for not checking the records. I am responsible for ignoring my sister. But I did not forge those signatures, and I did not steal the money.”
After the hearing, Larry approached Bethany in the courthouse hallway but remained several feet away.
“I’m not asking you to forgive me,” he said.
Bethany watched him carefully.
“What are you asking?”
“For permission to say something.”
She nodded.
“I was wrong before I entered that office. I was wrong when I stopped listening to you months earlier. What happened to Charlotte was not a misunderstanding. The misunderstanding explains my anger. It does not excuse what I did.”
Bethany’s expression softened slightly.
“That’s the first honest thing you’ve said in a long time.”
“I’m going to resign as property manager.”
“You don’t have to surrender your ownership.”
“I know. But I’m not qualified to manage the money.”
Bethany looked surprised.
Larry continued.
“I want an independent company to handle the properties. You should have equal access to every record.”
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“That’s what I wanted from the beginning.”
“I know that now.”
