Chapter 5 - the apartment overlooking the ocean
Amelia waited until Monday morning before driving to Mariner's Reach.
Henry wanted Paul to handle it.
Amelia insisted on seeing the place herself.
Not because she intended to confront Ava.
Because she wanted to understand what her sister had believed she could purchase using Amelia's name.
The sales center overlooked the Atlantic.
Glass walls.
White marble.
Soft instrumental music.
A model condominium occupied the top floor.
Amelia introduced herself using her full name.
The receptionist's eyes widened.
"Ms. Hayes?"
"Yes."
"We've been expecting revised financial documents from you."
Amelia's throat tightened.
"I'd like to speak with whoever handled my file."
Ten minutes later she sat across from a sales consultant named Rebecca.
Rebecca smiled warmly at first.
Then Amelia explained that she had never toured the property.
The smile vanished.
Rebecca closed the office door.
A preliminary purchase file existed.
Unit 8C.
Two bedrooms.
Ocean view.
Purchase price: 1.12 million dollars.
Buyer: Amelia Grace Hayes.
Additional intended resident: Ava Hayes.
Amelia stared at that line.
"Additional intended resident?"
Rebecca nodded.
"The woman who toured the property said she was your sister."
"Did she say I was buying it for her?"
Rebecca looked uncomfortable.
"She indicated the financing would be arranged through family assets."
"Did my mother come here?"
Rebecca hesitated.
"An older woman attended the second meeting."
"What did she say?"
"That she was coordinating trust documentation."
Amelia looked out at the ocean.
For years Diane had criticized her for renting a modest apartment.
For wasting her potential.
For being too cautious.
Meanwhile, Diane had been using Amelia's financial profile to try to place Ava in a million-dollar condominium.
"Was anything signed?"
"A reservation agreement."
"By me?"
"A signature appears."
"Can I see it?"
Rebecca produced a copy.
Amelia looked at the bottom.
Her name was written in a smooth, sloping imitation of her handwriting.
It was not terrible.
That made it worse.
Someone had practiced.
Beside her signature was another name.
Diane Hayes.
Authorized family representative.
Amelia felt a pressure behind her ribs.
"Did my mother sign this in front of you?"
"Yes."
"Did my sister sign anything?"
"An occupancy disclosure."
"Show me."
Ava's real signature appeared there.
Careless.
Looping.
Confident.
Rebecca seemed horrified.
"We did not complete the transaction."
"I know."
"Your family indicated there was a temporary issue with one lender."
"One lender."
"Yes."
That meant they intended to try another.
Amelia requested copies for her attorney.
Rebecca agreed after speaking with management.
When Amelia returned to Paul's office, Henry was pacing.
He took one look at her face.
"What?"
She handed him the reservation agreement.
Henry read it.
His mouth hardened.
"They tried to buy her a condo with your credit."
"Apparently."
"And your inheritance."
"Apparently."
Henry sat.
For the first time since the investigation began, he looked old.
Not weak.
Old.
Amelia hated that.
"Grandpa."
He rubbed one hand over his face.
"I raised your mother better than this."
Amelia did not know what to say.
Paul did.
"This is not the time to assign yourself blame."
Henry looked at him.
"I know what time it is."
Paul nodded.
"Then let's continue."
The storage facility had responded.
Unit 214 was rented under the name of a small consulting business.
D.H. Consulting.
The business had been formed four months earlier.
Owner: Diane Hayes.
The rental contract allowed only Diane and one additional authorized person.
Ava Hayes.
Paul had also discovered that Diane had opened a business checking account under D.H. Consulting.
The account had received several unusual deposits.
Not enormous.
Nine thousand dollars.
Twelve thousand.
Six thousand.
Amounts small enough to avoid attracting family attention.
Where had the money come from?
Henry knew within an hour.
Vendor reimbursements.
The Hayes family company regularly paid outside vendors for maintenance, legal filings, and property services.
Diane had approved several payments to new vendors.
Those vendors forwarded a portion to D.H. Consulting.
"Kickbacks?" Amelia asked.
Paul nodded.
"Possibly."
Henry's face became darker with every page.
"She has been stealing from the company."
Paul chose his words carefully.
"At minimum, she has financial activity that requires explanation."
Henry slammed the folder shut.
"I want her out."
"Not yet."
"Paul."
"If you remove her immediately, she knows we're investigating."
"Good."
"No."
Paul leaned forward.
"If there are more documents in that storage unit, we need them preserved. If there are other accounts, we need them identified. If she panics, records disappear."
Henry looked toward Amelia.
Amelia understood the question.
Could she tolerate pretending?
Could she sit across from Diane and Ava knowing what they had done?
She thought of the keys dropped on the floor.
The stolen miles.
The forged signature.
The oceanfront condo.
"Yes," she said.
Henry frowned.
"Yes what?"
"I can act normal."
Paul looked at her.
"Are you sure?"
"No."
She picked up the reservation agreement.
"But I can do it."
That night Diane called.
Her voice was sweet.
Too sweet.
"Are you coming to Sunday dinner this week?"
"Yes."
"Good. Your grandfather has been in a strange mood."
Amelia sat on her couch.
"Has he?"
"He locked his study."
"Maybe he wanted privacy."
Diane laughed lightly.
"You know how he gets."
Amelia did know.
That was why Diane sounded nervous.
"By the way," Diane continued, "Ava's car is finally going into the shop tomorrow."
Amelia already knew it wasn't.
She had driven past the mechanic.
Ava's car had never been scheduled.
Diane continued.
"She may need your SUV."
"No."
A pause.
"Amelia."
"No."
"Why are you being difficult?"
"Because it belongs to me."
Diane became quiet.
Then she said something Amelia would remember for years.
"Everything you have came from this family."
Amelia looked around her small apartment.
The sofa she had bought used.
The dining table she had refinished herself.
The framed degree she had earned.
The bills she paid.
The career she built.
"Not everything."
Diane's voice hardened.
"Don't become disrespectful."
Amelia smiled without humor.
"Good night, Mom."
She ended the call.
Thirty minutes later, the GPS alert Henry had enabled on Amelia's phone chimed.
Her SUV was moving.
Amelia went to the window.
The parking space was empty.
Ava had taken it again.
This time, the tracker showed her heading north.
Not toward Willow Creek.
May you like
Not toward Mariner's Reach.
Toward Henry's bank.
