Chapter 5: The Woman Behind the Company
Richard arranged an emergency meeting for the following morning.
By eight-thirty, Dad and I were back in his office, seated across from a woman in a charcoal suit who introduced herself as Patricia Wells, a forensic accountant specializing in estate disputes.
She opened a laptop and spread several documents across the conference table.
“Before we begin,” Patricia said, “I want to distinguish between suspicious activity and proven misconduct. We've identified transactions that warrant investigation, but we haven't established who ultimately benefited from every payment.””
Dad nodded.
“Understood.””
Patricia turned her screen toward us.
“The first thing I examined was the twenty-five-thousand-dollar transfer to Bennett Property Solutions LLC. The company was incorporated six weeks before Eleanor's death. It has no employees listed in the records we reviewed, no visible operating history, and no clear connection to property maintenance.””
“Then what does it do?”” I asked.
“Based on the records available to us, we don't yet know. But the transfer was followed by several smaller payments to separate recipients.””
She displayed a list.
Eight thousand dollars.
Six thousand five hundred.
Four thousand two hundred.
Three thousand.
The remaining amount had been divided into several transactions, each small enough to look unrelated at first glance.
“Where did those payments go?”” Dad asked.
“Two went to businesses associated with household services. One went to a credit card account. The others require additional documentation.””
“Can you identify the person behind the company?””
Patricia nodded.
“The registration service has provided a filing trail. The company was established through an intermediary, but the person who supplied the initial paperwork was identified as Daniel Price.””
Dad leaned back.
“Daniel?””
I knew the name.
Daniel Price had been my father's closest friend since college. He attended our family barbecues, helped Dad repair the deck, and brought groceries to our house when Mom first began chemotherapy.
After Mom died, he had stood beside Dad at the funeral and promised that he would always look after us.
I remembered him putting his hand on my shoulder beside the cemetery.
“Your mother was a wonderful woman, Lena,” he had said.
“If you ever need anything, you call me.””
My mouth went dry.
“Daniel is Dad's best friend.””
Patricia glanced at Richard.
“Is that correct?””
Dad nodded slowly.
“He owns a small accounting and tax preparation business. He handled some of our personal taxes years ago, although Eleanor eventually switched to another accountant.””
“Did he have access to her financial records?””
“Possibly. He knew us well. He knew which bank we used.””
Richard placed a hand on the table.
“We shouldn't jump to conclusions. A filing service may have been used by someone else, and a person's name appearing in a corporate record doesn't establish criminal intent.””
“I understand,” Dad said.
But I could see the shock on his face.
Daniel had been the person he called when he couldn't sleep after Mom died. They had watched football together, gone fishing, and talked for hours about work.
If Daniel had helped Vanessa access Mom's money, it meant the betrayal had begun long before the rent demand.
Patricia continued.
“The next issue is the power of attorney. The document gives Vanessa broad authority to conduct certain financial transactions on Eleanor's behalf. But the notary's records don't align with the date written on the document.””
“Could Eleanor have signed it before she was hospitalized?”” I asked.
“It's possible. That's why we need the original and any medical or appointment records relevant to the notarization. We also need to establish whether Eleanor understood the document's contents and whether the authorization remained valid.””
Richard nodded.
“We're requesting those records through the proper channels.””
Dad rubbed his temples.
“What about the money?””
“Based on the records we've reviewed, at least eighty-six thousand dollars in transfers requires explanation. We have identified a possible route for some of the funds, but we can't yet determine the final destination of every dollar.””
I thought about Mom's savings account.
“Can the money be recovered?””
“Potentially,” Patricia said.
“That depends on where the funds went, whether assets remain, and what the legal review establishes.””
After the meeting, Richard asked Dad to stay behind while Patricia made several calls.
I waited in the reception area, watching people hurry along the sidewalk outside.
My phone buzzed.
A message from Vanessa.
Your father is making a terrible mistake. Meet me at the house at noon. Come alone if you want to know what really happened to your mother.
I read it twice.
Then I showed Richard.
His expression tightened.
“Don't meet her alone.””
“She says she knows what happened to Mom.””
“Then she can tell us with counsel present.””
“What if she refuses?””
“Lena, you're entitled to want answers. But you don't have to put yourself in a vulnerable position to get them.””
I sent Vanessa a reply.
I'll come home at noon. Dad will be there.
Her response arrived almost immediately.
Then you'll never learn the truth.
I stared at the screen.
Whatever Vanessa knew, she wanted control over when and how I learned it.
At noon, Dad and I returned home with Richard on the phone and Patricia's business card in my pocket.
Vanessa was sitting at the kitchen table.
Three cups of coffee stood before her. A fourth chair had been pulled out, as though she had been expecting someone else.
She looked at Dad.
“I asked Lena to come alone.””
“And I decided not to let my daughter walk into another confrontation without me,” he replied.
Vanessa's mouth tightened.
“Of course. You two are a team now.””
“Why did you want to see Lena?”” Dad asked.
She looked at me.
“Because she deserves to know that her mother wasn't the perfect woman she remembers.””
I felt the familiar sting of anger.
“Don't use Mom to distract us.””
Vanessa's fingers tightened around her coffee cup.
“Your mother was secretive. She controlled every account, every bill, every decision. She made your father feel like a guest in his own house.””
Dad shook his head.
“That isn't true.””
“You weren't there for all of it, Marcus.””
“I was married to her for twenty-six years.””
“And I lived here, too!””
“You moved in less than four years before she died.””
Vanessa stood so quickly that coffee sloshed over the rim.
“Do you know what it's like to live in the shadow of a dead woman? Every photograph, every piece of furniture, every room reminds you that you came second.””
For the first time, I heard something beneath her anger.
Resentment.
Not simply toward Mom's money, but toward the life Mom had built before Vanessa entered it.
But resentment didn't explain the forged documents.
It didn't explain the transfers.
And it didn't explain why she had demanded two thousand dollars from me while using the same account she claimed was needed to maintain the house.
“Is that why you took the money?”” I asked.
Vanessa looked at me sharply.
“I didn't take anything.””
“Then why did twenty-five thousand dollars go to Bennett Property Solutions?””
She went silent.
Dad leaned forward.
“We know Daniel Price helped establish the company.””
Vanessa's face changed.
It was subtle, but unmistakable.
Her fingers stopped moving.
“You spoke to Daniel?””
“No,” Dad said.
“Patricia found his name in the filing records.””
Vanessa looked toward the window.
Then she gave a small, humorless laugh.
“Daniel was helping Eleanor with a financial arrangement.””
“What arrangement?”” Dad demanded.
“I don't know the details.””
“You just said he was helping her.””
“I said he was involved. That doesn't mean I know everything he did.””
Dad stared at her.
“Did you sign the power of attorney?””
Vanessa didn't answer.
“Did you arrange for the money to be transferred?””
“I handled paperwork Eleanor asked me to handle.””
“Did Eleanor ask you to create a company?””
Her silence stretched.
I felt my pulse pounding in my ears.
“Vanessa,” I said, “look at me. Did Mom know about the twenty-five thousand dollars?””
She finally met my eyes.
“Yes.””
The answer hit me like a physical blow.
Dad stood.
“You expect us to believe that?””
“I expect you to accept that Eleanor had financial arrangements you knew nothing about.””
“Then show us the documents.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“I don't have them.””
“Where are they?””
“I don't know!””
Dad's voice rose.
“Stop lying!””
She flinched, then immediately straightened.
“Fine. You want the truth? Daniel arranged everything.
He said Eleanor wanted to protect her money from unnecessary taxes and medical expenses. I signed what he told me to sign.””
“On whose authority?”” Richard asked.
His voice came through Dad's phone, which was lying on the table. He had been listening to the conversation.
Vanessa looked at the device.
“You recorded this?””
“No,” Richard replied.
“Marcus called me before we entered the house. I have been listening to the conversation with his permission.””
Vanessa's face flushed.
“You tricked me.””
“We asked you questions,” Richard said.
“You chose to answer them.””
She turned toward Dad.
“Daniel said he would take responsibility if anything went wrong.””
Dad stared at her.
“So you knew something could go wrong?””
“I didn't mean—”
“Did you know the money was supposed to be protected for Lena?””
Vanessa pressed her lips together.
That was answer enough.
Dad pulled out a chair and sat down as if his legs could no longer support him.
I had never seen him look so defeated.
“Why?”” he whispered.
“Why would you do this to Eleanor? Why would you do this to Lena?””
Vanessa looked at him, and for a moment her expression softened.
“Because I was tired of being treated like I didn't belong here.””
“That doesn't answer the question.””
“I wanted something that was mine.””
“You had a home. You had a marriage. You had a life with me.””
“And everything in this house belonged to Eleanor before I arrived!””
The words exploded from her.
She seemed to realize what she'd admitted only after the room fell silent.
I stood.
“So you took Mom's money because you were jealous of what she had?””
Vanessa's eyes filled with tears, but her voice remained hard.
“I didn't steal it.””
“Then prove it.””
She looked at the three of us in turn.
Finally, she grabbed her handbag.
“I'm not saying another word without a lawyer.””
Richard's voice remained calm.
“That would be sensible.””
Vanessa marched toward the front door.
But before she reached it, she turned back.
“Marcus, ask Daniel what happened the week Eleanor died. Ask him who was at the hospital. Ask him why your wife suddenly changed her mind about the power of attorney.””
Dad slowly stood.
“What are you talking about?””
Vanessa's hand tightened around the doorknob.
“Your wife didn't trust me. But she trusted Daniel.””
Then she left.
The door closed behind her.
Dad remained motionless.
I could see him trying to reconcile the friend who had held his shoulder at the funeral with the name on the corporate records.
“Call him,” I said.
Dad looked at me.
“What?””
“Call Daniel. Ask him about the hospital.””
He took out his phone.
Daniel answered on the third ring.
“Marcus! How are you holding up, buddy?””
Dad closed his eyes briefly.
“I need to ask you something about Eleanor's finances.””
A pause.
Then Daniel's voice changed.
“What about them?””
“Did you help Vanessa establish Bennett Property Solutions?””
Silence.
Long enough for me to hear the faint sound of traffic on Daniel's end of the call.
Finally, Daniel spoke.
“Where did you hear that name?””
Dad's face went white.
“Daniel, what did you do?””
“I think we should talk in person.””
“Answer the question.””
“I can't explain this over the phone.””
Dad's grip tightened around the device.
“Then come here.””
Another pause.
“All right,” Daniel said.
“But Marcus, before you hear anything from Vanessa, you need to understand something about the last week of Eleanor's life.””
Dad swallowed.
“What?””
Daniel's voice dropped to a whisper.
“Your wife didn't just suspect someone was taking her money. She discovered that someone had already taken it—and she was planning to expose them.””
The call ended.
Dad lowered his phone.
I stared at him.
“Who was she planning to expose?””
He looked toward the window, where Daniel's reflection seemed to appear in every passing car.
May you like
“I don't know,” he said.
But I had a terrible feeling we were about to find out.
