Chapter 6: The Second Account
The bank was twelve minutes away.
We made it in eight.
Daniel drove like a man who had already seen this disaster happen once before.
Mom sat beside me in the back seat, clutching her purse with both hands.
“What is in the trust?”” I asked.
Daniel kept his eyes on the road.
“I don't know.””
“You just said Vanessa could have everything.””
“I said she could have access.””
“That isn't the same thing.””
“No.””
He looked at me through the rearview mirror.
“That's why we need to find out.””
Rain hammered the windshield.
My phone buzzed.
Vanessa.
I didn't answer.
A message appeared.
*David, please come home. I swear I can explain.*
Then:
*Your mother is in danger.*
I stared at the screen.
Mom noticed.
“What did she say?””
I showed her.
Mom's face tightened.
“She knows.””
“Knows what?””
“That we found your father's files.””
I looked at Daniel.
“How?””
He shook his head.
“Maybe she has someone watching your mother.””
The thought made my blood run cold.
We pulled into the bank's underground garage.
Daniel parked.
“Stay with your mother.””
“What are you going to do?””
“Make sure the trust is frozen.””
Inside, a bank manager was waiting.
Her name was Ellen Price.
She greeted Mom with a worried expression.
“Mrs. Carter, I'm sorry to bring you in under these circumstances.””
Mom sat down.
“What happened?””
Ellen placed a folder on the desk.
“Someone attempted to transfer the balance of your trust account this morning.””
“How much?””
“Everything.””
Mom's hand flew to her mouth.
“How much is everything?””
Ellen glanced at the screen.
“$312,640.””
I stared at her.
“Who authorized it?””
Ellen looked at me.
“The request came through your wife's credentials.””
My chair scraped backward.
“Vanessa.””
Ellen nodded.
“But the transfer was stopped.””
“Why?””
“Because the signature didn't match.””
I exhaled.
For the first time in hours, I felt something close to relief.
“Then we're safe.””
Ellen shook her head.
“No.””
She opened another folder.
“There is another problem.””
I looked at her.
“What?””
“Your mother has two trust accounts.””
Mom frowned.
“Two?””
“Yes.””
Ellen looked at me.
“The second one isn't at this branch.””
“Where is it?””
“Offshore custodial account.””
The words barely registered.
“How much?””
Ellen hesitated.
“Approximately 1.7 million dollars.””
Nobody spoke.
Mom looked genuinely confused.
“I don't have one point seven million dollars.””
Ellen gave her a sympathetic look.
“You do.””
Daniel stood.
“Who has access?””
Ellen checked the file.
“Your father established the account before his death.””
“Who is the beneficiary?””
Ellen's eyes moved down the page.
“David Carter.””
I couldn't breathe.
“Me?””
“Yes.””
“Then why did Vanessa have access?””
“She didn't.””
I looked at Daniel.
“Then what was she trying to transfer?””
“The domestic trust.””
Ellen nodded.
“And that was only a fraction.””
Mom stared at me.
“Your father left that for you.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
“What?””
“I don't want it.””
Mom's eyes softened.
“He wanted you protected.””
“He wanted us protected.””
Daniel interrupted.
“David.””
I looked at him.
“This isn't about whether you want the money.””
He pointed to the documents.
“It's about why Vanessa knew the account existed.””
That question hung over the table.
Ellen cleared her throat.
“There is one more thing.””
“What?””
“The second account has a condition attached.””
“What condition?””
She handed me a copy.
I read it twice.
Then a third time.
The trust could only be accessed if I reached the age of forty-five.
I was forty-four.
My birthday was six weeks away.
Vanessa had been married to me for twelve years.
She knew exactly when my birthday was.
I suddenly understood.
“She was waiting.””
Daniel nodded.
“She needed your signature.””
“For what?””
“To become the authorized trustee.””
I looked at the paperwork.
There was a clause.
*Spousal consent required.*
My stomach turned.
“Can she do that without me?””
“No,” Ellen said.
“Then why all this?””
Daniel's face hardened.
“Because she thought you would sign.””
I remembered the documents she'd placed in front of me over the years.
Refinancing papers.
Business agreements.
Insurance forms.
Tax documents.
She always said the same thing.
It's routine, David.
Just sign here.
I had trusted her.
The bank manager suddenly looked at her computer.
“Wait.””
“What?””
She frowned.
“There was an update to the trust yesterday.””
My pulse quickened.
“What update?””
“Beneficiary change.””
“Can you see who requested it?””
Ellen nodded.
Then her expression changed.
“David…”
“What?””
She turned the screen toward me.
My name had been removed.
I stared.
Under *New Beneficiary*, there was another name.
Not Vanessa.
Not a stranger.
Someone I knew.
Someone I had seen in my father's photographs.
The man standing beside Vanessa.
I whispered,
“Who is Michael?””
Daniel went pale.
“Michael isn't his name.””
“What?””
Daniel took the document.
“That man used several names.””
“Then what is his real name?””
Daniel stared at the signature.
“Anthony Reed.””
Mom suddenly stood.
“No.””
We turned toward her.
She was shaking.
“You know him?””
Mom's lips trembled.
“He was your father's attorney.””
Daniel nodded.
“Exactly.””
I stared at the beneficiary form.
My father's attorney.
Vanessa's supposed partner.
The man she'd been photographed with.
And now the beneficiary of my father's hidden fortune.
“There's no way,” I said.
Daniel looked at Mom.
“What did your father tell you about Anthony?””
Mom closed her eyes.
“He said Anthony betrayed him.””
“Why?””
“He found out Anthony had been stealing from the company.””
Daniel's jaw tightened.
“That was never proven.””
Mom opened her eyes.
“Your father knew.””
I looked at the documents.
“Then why would my father leave anything connected to him?””
Daniel's expression became grim.
“He didn't.””
“What do you mean?””
“The beneficiary change wasn't made by your father.””
He pointed at the bottom.
“It was made yesterday.””
My blood turned cold.
“By whom?””
Ellen looked at the digital authorization record.
“Vanessa Carter.””
I stood so quickly that my chair fell backward.
“She changed my father's trust yesterday?””
Ellen nodded.
“But there's something you need to understand.””
“What?””
“She couldn't have done it legally.””
“Then how did she?””
Ellen's face went pale.
“She used your digital signature.””
The room went silent.
I looked at Mom.
Then Daniel.
Then the screen.
My signature.
Perfectly replicated.
Again.
Someone had been practicing my handwriting.
Someone had been preparing for this for years.
My phone rang.
Vanessa.
This time, I answered.
“David,” she whispered.
“Where are you?””
“At home.””
“Who is Anthony Reed?””
She stopped breathing.
I could hear it.
A tiny, involuntary gasp.
Then she said,
“You need to leave the bank.””
“Why?””
“Because Anthony isn't coming for the money.””
My grip tightened around the phone.
“What does he want?””
Vanessa began crying.
“He wants you.””
I stood frozen.
“What are you talking about?””
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
May you like
“David, your father didn't die naturally.””
The call went dead.
