Chapter 3 - The Missing Thirty Thousand
Harper discovered the missing money on a Tuesday afternoon.
She had just finished a twelve-hour shift when her hospital called to confirm the surgical payment. Harper opened her banking application and saw that her medical account had been nearly emptied.
Twenty-seven thousand dollars had been transferred.
The destination was an account she recognized immediately.
Chloe Bennett Wedding Expenses.
For several seconds, Harper could not move.
Then she called her sister.
Chloe answered over loud music.
“Harper, I’m at the rehearsal.”
“Did you take money from my account?”
The music stopped.
A door closed in the background.
Chloe’s voice became defensive.
“Mom said it was okay.”
“It was my account.”
“We’re paying it back.”
“When?”
“After the wedding.”
“Where did you get my authorization information?”
Silence.
Harper remembered that Eleanor had helped her open the account years earlier. Her mother still knew several security answers and had once been listed for emergency access.
“You knew that money wasn’t yours,” Harper said.
Chloe sighed impatiently.
“You had more than enough. My wedding was about to fall apart.”
“That money was for surgery.”
Another silence followed, but this one was different.
Chloe had not known.
For one brief moment, Harper expected an apology.
Instead, Chloe said, “What kind of surgery?”
Harper explained.
She described the specialist’s warning and the risk of postponement. Her voice remained calm, but her fingers shook around the phone.
Chloe lowered her voice.
“Can’t the hospital wait a few weeks?”
“The doctor said I shouldn’t delay.”
“The wedding is Saturday.”
“My surgery is Monday.”
“You can reschedule.”
Harper closed her eyes.
“Return the money.”
“I can’t. It’s already been paid to vendors.”
“Then cancel something.”
“Do you understand what that would do to me?”
Harper looked around her quiet living room. The boys’ school photographs lined the wall. Chloe’s children were asleep upstairs after Chloe had left them there for the rehearsal.
“Yes,” Harper said softly. “I understand exactly what this family expects me to sacrifice.”
Chloe became angry.
“You’re being dramatic.”
“No. I’m finally being clear.”
Harper ended the call and contacted the bank.
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Because Eleanor had used old access information and impersonated Harper during the transfer, the bank opened a fraud investigation. But recovering the money would take time.
Time Harper might not have.
