Chapter 6 - The Man at the Yacht Club
Daniel recognized him from the security footage.
Not by name.
By posture.
“He was at one of Arthur’s meetings.”
“When?”
“Years ago.”
“Doing what?”
“I don’t know.”
Clara zoomed in on the courthouse surveillance still Naomi had obtained through building security.
The image was grainy.
Gray hair.
Angular face.
A scar near the right ear.
Daniel stared.
“I remember Arthur calling him Grant.”
“Last name?”
“No.”
Naomi searched professional databases.
Dozens of Grants.
Nothing obvious.
Meanwhile Chloe began calling Clara.
Fourteen times.
Clara eventually answered.
“What?”
Chloe’s voice was quieter than usual.
“Did you mean what you said?”
“About your signature?”
“Yes.”
“You authorized two hundred seventy-five thousand dollars.”
“No, I didn’t.”
Clara sat straighter.
“Where are you?”
“At Mom’s.”
“Leave.”
“Why?”
“Because if you didn’t sign that transfer, Dad forged both of us.”
Silence.
Then Chloe laughed nervously.
“That’s insane.”
“It happened to me.”
“Dad wouldn’t.”
“He fed steak to your dog while his grandson got bread.”
“That’s different.”
“Is it?”
Another silence.
Chloe whispered, “He had me sign something last month.”
Clara closed her eyes.
“What?”
“He said it was a family tax document.”
“Did you read it?”
“No.”
“Of course not.”
“Don’t start.”
“I’m not starting anything. I’m asking.”
Chloe’s voice cracked.
“He told me I’d get thirty thousand dollars.”
There it was.
Arthur’s oldest language.
Reward.
“What did you sign?”
“I don’t know.”
“Find out.”
“I can’t just search Dad’s office.”
“You can if your name is on the transaction.”
Chloe lowered her voice.
“He locks the file room.”
Clara glanced at Daniel.
“Can you get into his home office?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Mom has a charity dinner tomorrow.”
“And Dad?”
“Country club.”
“Don’t take anything.”
“What?”
“Photograph it.”
Chloe laughed again.
“You suddenly think I’m your spy?”
“No. I think you finally realized Dad might steal from you too.”
Chloe hung up.
The next afternoon Clara met Naomi at the bank that managed the Eleanor trust.
A senior compliance officer named Gregory Lane greeted them in a conference room.
He looked uncomfortable before Clara said anything.
“Ms. Vance, I need to inform you there are restrictions on the account.”
“Placed by whom?”
“Vance Legacy Holdings.”
“I am the beneficiary.”
Gregory adjusted his tie.
“Our records indicate you assigned beneficial control.”
“I did not.”
Naomi slid forward a forensic document report.
“The signature is disputed.”
Gregory read it.
His face tightened.
“Was the bank informed of the dispute?”
“You’re being informed now.”
He excused himself.
Twenty minutes later, two executives entered.
Then bank counsel.
That told Clara everything.
They were scared.
Naomi requested complete transaction histories, authorization logs, device records, and all original signature documents.
The bank refused immediate production.
Naomi smiled.
“Then preserve them.”
“We preserve records routinely.”
“Good. Because destruction after notice becomes a different conversation.”
They left.
In the parking garage, Clara’s phone rang.
Chloe.
Clara answered.
“You found something?”
Chloe was breathing hard.
“Dad came home.”
“Where are you?”
“In his office.”
“Get out.”
“The door’s locked.”
“Chloe.”
“I found the file.”
“What file?”
“Grandma Eleanor.”
Clara gripped the phone.
“What’s in it?”
“Your trust.”
“What else?”
“Photos.”
“Of what?”
Chloe began crying.
Clara had almost never heard her sister cry.
Not sincerely.
“Chloe?”
“There’s a picture of you in the hospital.”
Clara felt sick.
“What picture?”
“You’re unconscious.”
“Who took it?”
“I don’t know.”
“And?”
“There’s somebody holding your hand.”
“Mom?”
“No.”
“Dad?”
“No.”
Chloe’s breath hitched.
“It’s Evelyn Reed.”
Clara froze.
Daniel looked over.
Then Chloe whispered:
“And she’s signing something with your hand.”
A loud crash sounded through the phone.
Chloe gasped.
A man’s voice filled the background.
Arthur.
May you like
“What the hell are you doing in here?”
The call ended.
