Margaret Lane refused to speak over the phone.<\/p>\n
Her message included an address and a time.<\/p>\n
A diner twenty miles outside town.<\/p>\n
Four o\u2019clock.<\/p>\n
Patrice read it twice before looking at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe chooses the location. She refuses the phone. She knows you have Daniel\u2019s records.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think it\u2019s a trap?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I dislike coincidences.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo do I.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich is why you\u2019re not going alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
By three thirty, Patrice and I were parked across from a low brick diner beside a gas station. Rebecca wanted to come, but Patrice insisted she remain with her children and secure Daniel\u2019s records.<\/p>\n
The key marked MARINA 17 sat inside Patrice\u2019s locked briefcase.<\/p>\n
I had photographed it three times.<\/p>\n
I was beginning to understand why Daniel kept copies.<\/p>\n
Margaret arrived seven minutes late.<\/p>\n
I recognized her immediately.<\/p>\n
The photograph was twelve years old, but time had changed her less than I expected. Her hair was shorter now and streaked with gray. She wore dark trousers, a white blouse, and no jewelry except a thin watch.<\/p>\n
She saw us through the window.<\/p>\n
For several seconds, she remained beside her car.<\/p>\n
Then she entered.<\/p>\n
\u201cCarol?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice was softer than I expected.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m Margaret.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrice introduced herself.<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s eyes tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou brought an attorney.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou contacted a woman whose husband forged her name across millions of dollars in transactions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret sat.<\/p>\n
\u201cFair.\u201d<\/p>\n
A waitress came over.<\/p>\n
Nobody ordered food.<\/p>\n
Margaret asked for coffee.<\/p>\n
I asked for water.<\/p>\n
Patrice asked for nothing.<\/p>\n
For nearly a minute, Margaret stared at the sugar dispenser.<\/p>\n
Then she looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry about Daniel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEleven years late.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were at his funeral.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou spoke with Dale.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you talk about?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted to know what Daniel had left behind.\u201d<\/p>\n
The answer was so direct that it unsettled me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you tell him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat I didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy were you there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Daniel saved me from going to prison.\u201d<\/p>\n
I glanced at Patrice.<\/p>\n
She leaned forward slightly.<\/p>\n
Margaret wrapped both hands around her coffee cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwelve years ago, I handled financial administration for Harris Commercial Roofing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou worked for Dale?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor how long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlmost nine years.\u201d<\/p>\n
I had no memory of her.<\/p>\n
That disturbed me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never met you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was intentional.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDale\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked embarrassed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe kept certain employees away from his personal life.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause we knew too much.\u201d<\/p>\n
The waitress brought my water.<\/p>\n
I waited until she moved away.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret inhaled.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Harris Commercial Roofing wasn\u2019t the only business.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know about the holding company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were more.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt different times? Seven.\u201d<\/p>\n
The number sat between us.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat were they for?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMoving revenue. Holding assets. Shifting liability. Sometimes tax reasons. Sometimes legitimate restructuring.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd sometimes?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes lowered.<\/p>\n
\u201cThings I should have reported.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrice spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cFraud?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cPotentially.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPotentially?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not a lawyer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou submitted documents you knew were false?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy documents?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anger rose so suddenly that I nearly stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou forged my name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you knew it was forged.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen explain the difference to me slowly because I\u2019m having trouble appreciating it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret absorbed that without defending herself.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew Dale used your identity information. I knew signatures appeared that I didn\u2019t believe were yours.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t believe?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
There it was.<\/p>\n
Clean and ugly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you did nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI helped.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her honesty stopped me.<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s voice trembled slightly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI processed some of the paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrice asked, \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked toward the window.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Dale had something on me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI stole from the company.\u201d<\/p>\n
I had not expected that.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout thirty-six thousand dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThirteen years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy husband was dying.\u201d<\/p>\n
She paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had medical bills. I told myself I was borrowing it.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of my postponed appointments.<\/p>\n
The irony was cruel enough to make me almost laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Dale discover it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd instead of firing you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe gave me a choice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHelp him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret rubbed her thumb against the coffee cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first, the things he asked were small. Print documents. Change mailing addresses. Forward statements to a private box. Then he started putting assets into entities connected to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause married couples attract less scrutiny.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrice nodded slightly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd because Carol could eventually be left holding liability.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Something in my chest hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he always plan to leave me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen what did Daniel discover?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes changed at his name.<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel was supplying materials to some Harris projects. He noticed invoices that didn\u2019t make sense. Same materials billed twice. Projects listed under different companies. He started asking questions.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds like him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe followed the paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo did Dale know Daniel was investigating?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEventually.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey argued.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel came to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout three months before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he want?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProof.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you give it to him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause by then I was terrified.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf prison?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf Dale.\u201d<\/p>\n
The diner noise seemed to recede.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat had he done?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret hesitated.<\/p>\n
Patrice noticed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re going to help yourself by talking now, this is where incomplete answers become a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not trying to help myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone is trying to help themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was the first harsh thing I had heard Patrice say.<\/p>\n
Margaret accepted it.<\/p>\n
\u201cDale threatened people.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEmployees. Contractors. Vendors.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cViolence?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUsually money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUsually?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a mechanic named Peter Sloan.\u201d<\/p>\n
I had heard the name years earlier.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe worked for Dale.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe maintained equipment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe discovered company plates being switched between trucks.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo conceal ownership.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was fired.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s all?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo weeks later, his garage burned.\u201d<\/p>\n
My skin chilled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas Dale responsible?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t prove it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Daniel think he was?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrice wrote the name.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeter Sloan. Is he alive?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes. Last I knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can give you an address.\u201d<\/p>\n
I leaned closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow tell me about my brother.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret closed her eyes briefly.<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel wanted to report everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cState revenue first. Then federal investigators.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Dale know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told him.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words hit harder than I expected.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told Dale.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was scared.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou betrayed Daniel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen you came to his funeral.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I pushed my chair back.<\/p>\n
Patrice touched my wrist.<\/p>\n
Not to stop me.<\/p>\n
To remind me that leaving was a choice.<\/p>\n
I stayed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened after you told Dale?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey met.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe week before Daniel died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe marina.\u201d<\/p>\n
My eyes went to Patrice.<\/p>\n
\u201cSlip seventeen?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked startled.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou found the key.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew about it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel rented a storage locker near the marina office.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he keep there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCopies.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything he was collecting.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of the brass tag in Patrice\u2019s briefcase.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs it still there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy tell me not to go?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Dale has been checking that marina for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe never found the key.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart began beating harder.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened at their meeting?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret stared at the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn\u2019t there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDale came back furious.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said Daniel had made a serious mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat could mean anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe asked me to prepare documents transferring two properties out of Harris Construction Holdings.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe morning after Daniel died.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
I felt the cold climb from my hands into my arms.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe morning after?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t ask.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course you didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret flinched.<\/p>\n
I did not apologize.<\/p>\n
Patrice asked, \u201cWhere were those properties moved?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo an entity called Lane Coastal Management.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Margaret.<\/p>\n
\u201cLane?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy name.\u201d<\/p>\n
I nearly stood again.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou owned them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour company did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA company Dale created using my information.\u201d<\/p>\n
The parallel was horrifying.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did to you what he did to me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot exactly. I signed some documents willingly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he had the theft over you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to the properties?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were transferred again two years later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret hesitated.<\/p>\n
That tiny pause made me suspicious.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo Ashley?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen who?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo Dale personally through another company.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrice studied her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy conceal this until now?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he contacted me six months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse shifted.<\/p>\n
\u201cDale?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted help moving the remaining assets.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe four hundred thousand?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat figure is misleading.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is it really?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCloser to three point six million in liquid and near-liquid assets.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
Ashley had misunderstood by almost a factor of ten.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was Dale planning?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo leave.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Ashley?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked genuinely surprised.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho\u2019s Ashley?\u201d<\/p>\n
I laughed once.<\/p>\n
Of course.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe proposed to her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLast week.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe never mentioned her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat after the final transfers, we were going away together.\u201d<\/p>\n
The betrayal was so layered that for a moment it became almost abstract.<\/p>\n
Ashley thought Dale would leave me for her.<\/p>\n
Margaret thought Dale would leave everyone with her.<\/p>\n
And I had thought Dale was struggling to keep a roofing company alive.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you to him?\u201d<\/p>\n
I asked.<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were involved.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYears ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile we were married.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout three years.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked away.<\/p>\n
Another affair should have hurt.<\/p>\n
Instead I felt only exhaustion.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did it end?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter Daniel died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI couldn\u2019t look at Dale the same way.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sentence caught me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret stared at the coffee.<\/p>\n
\u201cI asked him where he had been the night Daniel crashed.\u201d<\/p>\n
My throat tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat he was home with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered the night.<\/p>\n
Rain.<\/p>\n
A late call.<\/p>\n
Police.<\/p>\n
Hospital lights.<\/p>\n
Dale arriving after I did.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wasn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked up sharply.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me he\u2019d been checking storm damage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat time did he get home?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe didn\u2019t. I went straight to the hospital after the police called.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat time did you last see him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEarly afternoon.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s face lost color.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told investigators he\u2019d been with you until around nine.\u201d<\/p>\n
My hands went numb.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat investigators?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cInsurance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrice leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou saw that statement?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you have a copy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you obtain it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
I forced myself to think.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere was Dale that night?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret hesitated again.<\/p>\n
I caught it.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know he came to the office the next morning with mud on his boots.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRain does that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd damage to the passenger side of his truck.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everything stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat damage?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cScraped paint. Broken mirror.\u201d<\/p>\n
I could hear Daniel\u2019s funeral hymn in my head.<\/p>\n
See the wet cemetery grass.<\/p>\n
Feel Dale\u2019s hand gripping mine beside the grave.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid anyone investigate his truck?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere did it go?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe sold it within a week.\u201d<\/p>\n
My breath caught.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me the transmission failed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret nodded miserably.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe sold it to Peter Sloan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe mechanic?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrice\u2019s pen stopped moving.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs that truck still around?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
We sat in silence.<\/p>\n
Then Margaret said, \u201cCarol, there\u2019s more.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Dale contacted me six months ago, he wasn\u2019t just asking for help.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said somebody had begun asking questions about the old accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCould it have been police?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. He thought it was someone close.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cClose to whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe thought Daniel had given copies to another person before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRebecca?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe kept saying, \u2018The sister knows more than she thinks.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy sister?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI assumed he meant you.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
Then another possibility arrived.<\/p>\n
Daniel had one sister.<\/p>\n
Me.<\/p>\n
But I also had a sister.<\/p>\n
The one in Atlanta.<\/p>\n
The one who told me immediately to get a lawyer.<\/p>\n
\u201cPatrice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I pulled out my phone.<\/p>\n
My sister answered on the third ring.<\/p>\n
\u201cCarol?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Daniel ever give you documents?\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Not confusion.<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
My stomach dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he?\u201d<\/p>\n
She exhaled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere are you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnswer me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The diner vanished around me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo weeks before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat documents?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know. A sealed envelope.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Another silence.<\/p>\n
\u201cCarol.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI still have it.\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n
For eleven years, my sister had possessed something Daniel believed mattered enough to hide.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Daniel made me promise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPromise what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat I wouldn\u2019t give it to you unless Dale ever tried to make you sign away property.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at Patrice.<\/p>\n
The folder.<\/p>\n
Friday.<\/p>\n
Dale\u2019s forged transfers.<\/p>\n
The timing was no coincidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s inside?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never opened it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBring it to Patrice\u2019s office.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cToday.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCarol, what is happening?\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked across the table at Margaret.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything Daniel tried to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n
I ended the call.<\/p>\n
Margaret pushed her untouched coffee aside.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou believe me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe parts of what you said.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s fair.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne thing doesn\u2019t make sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019ve been afraid of Dale for years, why help him again six months ago?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret went very still.<\/p>\n
There it was.<\/p>\n
The question she had hoped I would forget.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said he contacted you for help moving assets.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you help?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why are there recent messages between you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou saw them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAshley did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked toward the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cMargaret.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was pretending.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo find out what he was planning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t answer.<\/p>\n
Patrice\u2019s voice became flat.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor whom, Ms. Lane?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret finally looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a federal investigator.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDale has been under investigation for almost eight months.\u201d<\/p>\n
The revelation should have reassured me.<\/p>\n
Instead one thought came first.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf that\u2019s true, why didn\u2019t anyone warn me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s expression was bleak.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause until this week, they weren\u2019t sure whether you were a victim.\u201d<\/p>\n
My mouth went dry.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did they think I was?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her answer came quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis partner.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret Lane refused to speak over the phone. Her message included an address and a time. A diner twenty miles outside town. Four o\u2019clock. Patrice read it twice before looking … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2796,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chapter-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2802","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2802"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2802\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2814,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2802\/revisions\/2814"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2796"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2802"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2802"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2802"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}