Chapter 5: What My Father Knew
My father's handwriting had always been unmistakable.
Even after nine years, I could recognize it instantly.
The sharp angle of his capital letters.
The heavy pressure on certain words.
The slight upward slant at the end of every sentence.
I stared at the note until the letters blurred.
“Why didn't you show me this before?”” I asked Daniel.
He didn't answer immediately.
Mom did.
“Because your father asked him not to.””
I looked at her.
“You knew about this note?””
“No.””
She wiped her eyes.
“I knew he was worried.””
“About Vanessa?””
Mom shook her head.
“He didn't trust her.””
I felt a bitter laugh rise in my throat.
“My father met Vanessa twice.””
“Three times,” Mom corrected softly.
I looked at her.
“You never told me that.””
“He came to our house the week before the wedding.””
“What did he say?””
Mom's gaze drifted toward the old photographs on the mantel.
“He asked me not to marry you.””
The room went silent.
I stared at her.
“What?””
“He said Vanessa was hiding something.””
I couldn't move.
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“Because you were happy.””
“Mom…”
“You were in love.””
I sat down.
For years, I'd believed my father had accepted Vanessa.
I'd remembered him shaking her hand at our engagement dinner.
I'd remembered his smile in the wedding photographs.
I'd remembered thinking he'd finally approved of my choice.
But apparently, that wasn't the whole story.
Daniel spoke quietly.
“Your father hired me six weeks before his death.””
“To do what?””
“To investigate Bellrose.””
I looked at him.
“But Bellrose didn't exist then.””
“Not under that name.””
Daniel pulled out another file.
“There was another company.””
He opened it.
*Westbridge Capital Partners.*
I recognized the name.
“That's the company Vanessa worked for before we got married.””
Daniel nodded.
My stomach tightened.
“She told me she was an accountant there.””
“She was.””
“What happened?””
“Westbridge collapsed.””
“I know.””
“No,” Daniel said.
“You know what Vanessa told you.””
He slid a newspaper clipping toward me.
The headline read:
*INVESTMENT FIRM ACCUSED OF MISMANAGING CLIENT FUNDS*
I read the article.
Several investors had lost money.
One of the names mentioned in the article was Vanessa's former supervisor.
I looked up.
“Was Vanessa involved?””
“Not officially.””
“That isn't an answer.””
“She wasn't charged.””
“But?””
Daniel hesitated.
“But your father believed she knew where the missing money went.””
Mom whispered, “He was trying to protect you.””
I looked at the note again.
“If anything happens to me, do not let Vanessa Carter access the trust.””
I suddenly remembered something.
“Wait.””
I stood.
“My father didn't just leave Mom money.””
Daniel watched me.
“What else?””
“The house.””
“What about it?””
“He told me the house belonged to Mom.””
“It does.””
“No.””
I shook my head.
“He said something else.””
Mom looked at me.
“What?””
“He said the house couldn't be sold.””
Daniel's expression changed.
“That's right.””
“Why?””
“Because it's part of the trust.””
I stared at him.
“Then why did Vanessa have paperwork saying she could refinance it?””
Daniel went completely still.
“What paperwork?””
“I saw it two years ago.””
I had almost forgotten.
Vanessa had told me we needed to refinance the house to fund renovations for her boutique.
She'd brought documents to the kitchen table.
I'd signed several pages without reading them carefully.
I had trusted her.
Now I felt sick.
“Daniel,” I said, “could she have used those documents to access the trust?””
He didn't answer.
That was answer enough.
Mom suddenly stood.
“David.””
“What?””
She pointed toward the hallway.
“Your father's study.””
I frowned.
“My father never had a study here.””
“Not here.””
She grabbed her purse.
“At my house.””
We drove back to her house.
The afternoon sky was gray, and rain tapped against the windshield as Daniel followed behind us.
Inside, Mom walked directly to the old hallway closet.
She removed several coats.
Behind them was a narrow wooden door.
I had never seen it before.
“Mom, what is this?””
“A room your father built.””
She unlocked it.
The door opened with a long creak.
Dust floated through the air.
Inside were shelves.
Boxes.
Old financial records.
Photographs.
And a metal filing cabinet.
My heart began pounding.
Mom walked to the cabinet.
“He told me never to open it unless something happened.””
“Something happened nine years ago.””
“I know.””
“Why wait until now?””
She looked at me.
“Because your father said the person who betrayed him would eventually betray you.””
Daniel entered behind us.
He stared at the cabinet.
“I thought this was destroyed.””
“You knew about it?””
“Yes.””
“Then why didn't you tell me?””
“Because I couldn't.””
I opened the cabinet.
The first folder contained tax records.
The second contained property documents.
The third was labeled:
*VANESSA*
I stopped breathing.
Mom whispered, “Open it.””
Inside were photographs.
Vanessa meeting strangers.
Vanessa entering banks.
Vanessa standing outside Westbridge Capital.
And one photograph that made my hands go numb.
It showed Vanessa sitting across from my father at a restaurant.
The date was two months before our wedding.
I turned it over.
There was handwriting on the back.
*She asked me to invest in a company that did not exist.*
I looked at Daniel.
“What does that mean?””
He took the photograph.
“Your father suspected Vanessa was preparing something.””
“What?””
“An identity transfer.””
I frowned.
“What is that?””
Daniel looked at Mom.
Then at me.
“She wasn't planning to marry you because she loved you.””
Mom covered her mouth.
I felt the room spinning.
Daniel continued.
“She wanted access to your family's assets.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
He pointed toward the next photograph.
Vanessa was standing beside another man.
A man I didn't recognize.
The handwriting beneath it said:
*Her partner.*
I turned the page.
Another photograph.
The same man.
This time, he was shaking hands with my father.
My heart stopped.
“Who is he?””
Daniel stared at the picture.
“That's the question your father died trying to answer.””
Then something fell from the back of the filing cabinet.
A small envelope landed on the floor.
Mom picked it up.
It was sealed.
My name was written across the front.
In my father's handwriting.
I opened it.
Inside was a single key.
And a note.
*David, if you are reading this, Vanessa has already found the second account.*
I looked at Daniel.
“What second account?””
Before he could answer, Mom's phone rang.
She checked the screen.
Her face drained of color.
“It's the bank.””
She answered.
“Hello?””
A woman's voice came through the speaker.
Mom's expression changed.
“What?””
I stepped closer.
The woman on the phone said something that made Mom grip the table.
She whispered,
“That's impossible.””
I took the phone from her.
“What's happening?””
The banker hesitated.
Then she said,
“Mr. Carter, we have a problem.””
“What kind of problem?””
“Your wife's name has just been added as an authorized user to your mother's trust account.””
I looked at Daniel.
He was already reaching for his coat.
“David,” he said, “we have to get to the bank.””
“Why?””
“Because if Vanessa has access to that account…”
He stopped.
“What?””
May you like
Daniel looked at the key in my hand.
“She may already have everything your father spent nine years protecting.””
