Chapter 7 - The Signature That Moved
Lily stabilized before sunrise.
The replacement dose had arrived just in time, but Dr. Bennett warned that she would need close observation for several days.
Emily sat beside the bed, listening to the quiet rhythm of the monitor.
She should have slept.
Instead, she studied the fraudulent account record.
The electronic signature looked like hers.
Not merely similar.
Exact.
The angle of the letters, the long tail on the final r and the small break in the line between her first and last name all matched the signature she had used for years.
Vanessa stood near the window.
“Daniel had access to your digital signature.”
“He had access to scanned documents.”
“He also had access to your father’s estate files.”
Emily looked at the authorization code again.
EC-0714.
“My father died on July 14.”
“Daniel used that date for several company passwords.”
“How do you know?”
“He asked me to set up a project account last year. The password ended in 0714.”
Emily’s hands tightened around the papers.
“He turned the date into a master key.”
Rachel entered carrying two cups of coffee.
“The investigator from the hospital compliance office is ready to speak with you.”
“Does Daniel know?”
“He has already called the hospital legal department.”
“Of course he has.”
The compliance investigator introduced herself as Mira Patel. She was precise, careful and visibly disturbed by what she had found.
“The transfer account was created fourteen months ago,” she explained.
Emily stared at her.
“Fourteen months?”
“Yes.”
“That was before Lily’s current prescription.”
“The account was not created for this medication alone. It has been connected to eleven reimbursement claims.”
“Eleven?”
Mira placed a folder on the table.
“Three claims used Lily’s patient number. Eight involved other pediatric patients.”
Emily’s breath caught.
“So other children lost medication?”
“We don’t know that yet. Some may have received replacement inventory without being told the original shipment had been diverted.”
Dr. Bennett entered the room.
“Why wasn’t I informed that the account existed?”
Mira looked at him.
“You approved its verification.”
Emily watched his face.
Dr. Bennett appeared genuinely shocked.
“I did no such thing.”
Mira turned a page toward him.
His electronic signature appeared beneath the words:
Clinical authorization confirmed by Samuel Bennett, MD.
The doctor leaned closer.
“That is my signature, but I did not approve this form.”
Daniel’s message echoed in Emily’s mind.
Ask Bennett why he approved the account.
“You both have forged signatures,” Vanessa said.
Mira nodded.
“Possibly. Or one signature is forged and the other person is lying.”
Dr. Bennett looked at her.
“You believe I may be involved?”
“I believe the account passed three levels of security. Someone had a physician credential, a family credential and access to the foundation’s reimbursement platform.”
Emily glanced at his silver watch.
“What does SCF have to do with the transfer?”
“The St. Catherine Foundation operates emergency medical grants,” Mira replied. “When an insurer rejects or delays a prescription, the foundation may temporarily cover the cost.”
“Then why did the foundation pay money into a private account?”
“It did not. The fraudulent system made it appear that the foundation had verified the transaction. The actual payment came from the Carter Family Medical Reserve.”
“My father’s reserve.”
“Yes.”
Mira slid another page forward.
“The reserve transferred $312,000 over fourteen months.”
Emily felt numb.
“Where did the money go?”
“Meridian Patient Relief received most of it. Several smaller payments went to contractors, storage facilities and consulting companies.”
“Companies owned by Daniel?”
“Some are connected to him. Others are not.”
Vanessa leaned over the table.
“What about my company?”
“You received one payment.”
“Daniel created my company.”
Mira wrote something down.
“We’ll need documentation of that.”
Dr. Bennett continued reading.
“Who authorized the foundation verification?”
Mira hesitated.
“That is the problem.”
“What problem?”
“The credential is registered to you, but the login originated inside the ICU administrative network.”
“Anyone with access to that network could have used it.”
“Not anyone,” Mira replied. “Only five people.”
She placed a list on the table.
Dr. Bennett’s name was first.
Rachel Monroe’s name was second.
The remaining three belonged to hospital administrators.
One name immediately caught Emily’s attention.
May you like
Elaine Carter.
Her mother.
