Chapter 5: My Attorney Found the Missing Money
Three days after the fall, I was transferred to a quieter hospital room with a larger window overlooking the courtyard.
The doctors had told me I would need time to recover. My ribs still hurt when I moved, and walking required assistance, but my mind was clearer than it had been in years.
Elaine Brooks arrived shortly after ten that morning carrying a leather briefcase and two coffees.
She set the drinks on the table and pulled a chair beside my bed.
“How are you feeling?””
“Like I lost a fight with an entire staircase.””
Elaine smiled briefly.
“I'm glad you can still joke.””
“It's either that or scream.””
“Save the screaming for when we review these documents.””
She opened her briefcase and removed several printed pages.
I recognized the first immediately.
It was the document bearing my signature.
Seeing it on paper made the betrayal feel more real.
“Did Devin sign this?”” I asked.
“We haven't established who created the signature,” Elaine replied.
“But we obtained the records for the proposed account change. The institution confirmed that the request was submitted using information associated with your husband.””
I stared at her.
“Could he have done it without knowing what the document said?””
“Possibly. That's why we're examining the communications and authorization records rather than assuming we know who is responsible.””
She turned to another page.
“There's something more concerning. The proposed transfer would have moved control of a substantial portion of your inheritance into an account connected to a company called Carter Holdings.””
I frowned.
“That's Devin's family company.””
“Yes.””
“Why would my money need to go through his company?””
“According to the paperwork, the transfer was described as an investment arrangement. But the supporting records raise questions about where the money would ultimately have gone.””
Elaine slid a bank statement toward me.
I scanned the page.
Several large payments had been made from Carter Holdings over the preceding six months. Some were labeled consulting fees. Others were described as loan repayments.
One payment stood out.
It had been made to a company called M.C. Advisory.
“Who owns this company?”” I asked.
Elaine opened another document.
“That's what I wanted to show you.””
The company registration listed Margaret Carter as its principal owner.
My mouth went dry.
“How much money went there?””
“The records we have so far show multiple transfers. We're still tracing the full amount, but the transactions appear to predate the incident at the mansion.””
I stared at the figures.
Margaret had spent years telling me that I was selfish for protecting the money my father left me.
She had criticized my decision to maintain a separate account. She had accused me of treating marriage like a business contract.
Yet while I was trying to be careful, she had apparently been moving money through companies I had never heard of.
“Did Devin know?””
“I can't tell you that yet,” Elaine said.
“Some communications suggest he knew about the proposed restructuring. They don't establish that he understood every transaction or knew about any alleged wrongdoing.””
I looked away.
That distinction mattered legally.
Emotionally, it offered very little comfort.
“Can we stop the transfer?””
“The proposed change hasn't been completed, according to the records we received. I've notified the relevant institution that you dispute the authorization and have requested that no action be taken without proper verification.””
I exhaled slowly.
“So my inheritance is safe?””
“It's protected against this particular requested change for now, but I don't want to promise that every risk has been resolved. We'll keep monitoring the account and obtain the remaining records.””
I nodded.
“What's next?””
“We need to preserve evidence. Your messages, the photographs Tasha took, and the security footage may all be relevant. If you choose to make a formal report, your statement can be considered alongside the other evidence.””
“I want to report what happened.””
Elaine studied me.
“Are you certain? This may become a very public dispute.””
I looked at the hospital card Margaret had sent with the flowers.
I had kept it in the drawer beside my bed.
Accidents happen. Stop making everything into a drama.
“Yes,” I said.
“I'm certain.””
Elaine placed the card inside a clear document sleeve.
“Then we'll proceed carefully.””
Before she left, she asked me to describe the moments leading up to the fall again.
I told her about the inheritance papers, Margaret's grip on my shoulder, and the shove.
I described Devin arriving afterward.
I told her exactly what he had said.
When I finished, Elaine closed her notebook.
“There's one more thing you should know. Devin has contacted the security company to preserve the footage.””
I blinked.
“He has?””
“Yes. The company confirmed that someone requested deletion, but the original recording remains available. The footage will need to be obtained and reviewed through the appropriate process.””
I wasn't sure what to feel.
Relief, perhaps.
Or suspicion.
“Why would he suddenly help?””
“People act for many reasons, Alicia. We shouldn't guess. Let his actions and the evidence speak for themselves.””
After she left, I sat by the window and watched the sunlight move across the courtyard.
I wanted to believe Devin had finally chosen the truth.
But I remembered the way he had looked at me on the staircase.
The way he had defended his mother before asking whether I could breathe.
And I knew that one good decision couldn't erase everything that came before it.
My phone rang just after noon.
It was Devin.
I answered but didn't greet him.
“Alicia,” he said quietly.
“I need to see you.””
“Why?””
“Because there's something I should have told you before the accident.””
My fingers tightened around the phone.
“Then tell me now.””
“I can't explain everything over the phone.””
“Try.””
He breathed out.
“Mom had debts. Serious ones. She told me the family company was in danger, and she said your inheritance could help us restructure everything.””
“You mean my money could pay her debts.””
“I didn't know the full situation.””
“But you knew you were asking me to sign financial papers.””
“Yes.””
“And you didn't tell me where the money was going.””
“No.””
I closed my eyes.
“Why should I believe anything you say now?””
“You shouldn't have to believe me just because I'm your husband.””
His answer surprised me.
“I know I've given you reasons not to trust me,” he continued.
“I'm trying to get the records together. I've asked the security company to preserve the footage.””
“Why?””
“Because you were telling the truth, and I should have listened.””
A bitter laugh escaped me.
“You should have listened before I ended up in a hospital bed.””
“I know.””
“No, Devin. I don't think you do.””
He fell silent.
I looked down at the hospital blanket.
“Did you know your mother planned to push me?””
“No.””
“Did you help her prepare the papers?””
“I helped her prepare the account proposal. I did not create that signature.””
“Did you know she was using the company to move money into her own accounts?””
Another silence.
This one lasted too long.
“Devin?””
“I saw payments I didn't understand,” he admitted.
“Mom told me they were temporary loans. I didn't investigate them.””
“So you chose not to ask questions.””
“Yes.””
I swallowed the lump in my throat.
“That choice helped put me here.””
“I know.””
I ended the call.
My hands were shaking, but my decision wasn't.
I wasn't going to protect Devin from the consequences of his own choices just because he had finally started admitting them.
That afternoon, Nurse Daniels helped me walk a short distance along the hospital corridor. When I returned to my room, I found an envelope waiting on the bedside table.
It had no name on it.
Inside was a single printed page.
The heading read:
*CARTER HOLDINGS — INTERNAL ACCOUNT SUMMARY*
Several transactions were highlighted in yellow.
At the bottom, someone had written a note in black ink.
Ask Devin why the largest transfer was approved three weeks before Margaret demanded your signature.
I called Elaine immediately.
She arrived less than an hour later and studied the page.
“Where did this come from?””
“I don't know.””
She checked the document carefully.
“We'll need to verify its authenticity, but the account reference is consistent with the company records we're already reviewing.””
“Three weeks before the papers?””
“Yes.””
I looked at the highlighted transaction.
The amount was large enough to make my stomach turn.
“Was that money mine?””
“We don't know yet,” Elaine replied.
“But if the transaction involved funds belonging to you, we need to establish who authorized it and on what basis.””
She photographed the page and placed it in her briefcase.
Then she looked directly at me.
“Alicia, whoever sent this appears to know more about the financial arrangements than we've uncovered so far.””
My phone vibrated.
A new message from Tasha.
Mrs. Carter, I found something else in the study.
A second message followed.
It explains why Margaret was so desperate for you to sign.
Then a photograph appeared.
It showed a handwritten note beside a bank statement.
The note was unmistakably Margaret's.
If Alicia discovers the original transfer, Devin will have no choice but to cooperate.
I stared at the words.
May you like
For the first time, I wondered whether Margaret had been trying to protect herself from my husband as much as she had been trying to take my money.
And if she had kept records of what Devin knew, then the truth might be far more complicated than either of them wanted me to discover.
