Chapter 7: The Account Nobody Knew About
“Can you confirm whether you personally authorized Brielle Carter to access your mother's financial records?””
Marcus stared at Brielle.
The bright afternoon sunlight streamed through the living room windows, illuminating the faces of thirty guests who had gathered around the kitchen entrance. Nobody was pretending this was still an engagement party.
“No,” Marcus told the woman on the phone.
“I never authorized that.””
“Thank you, Mr. Carter. For security purposes, we need to verify whether Ms. Carter has permission to act on behalf of Loretta Carter or access any account connected to your household.””
“She doesn't.””
Brielle stepped forward.
“Marcus, don't answer questions you don't understand.””
He covered the phone with his hand.
“I understand perfectly well that my mother's name is on a financial document she says she never signed.””
“You don't know the whole story!””
“Then tell it.””
She glanced at the guests.
“Not here.””
Marcus returned to the call.
“Please freeze any pending transfers involving my mother's account and flag any unauthorized access. My mother is here, and she's willing to verify her identity herself.””
“Certainly, sir. I'll connect you with our fraud department.””
Brielle's face tightened.
“Marcus, stop!””
He uncovered the phone.
“I'm listening.””
“You're making a terrible mistake.””
“No. I'm asking the bank to investigate.””
“You're going to destroy our future over paperwork!””
He looked at her emerald dress, still stained with dirty dishwater.
“Our future?””
“Yes!””
“You used my mother's card to buy that dress. You listed her retirement account in a budget she never approved. And now the bank is telling me somebody attempted to access her financial records.””
“I was trying to help us!””
“By taking her money?””
“I never took anything from her retirement account!””
“Then the investigation will prove that.””
For the first time, Brielle looked as though she wanted to disappear.
Marcus handed the phone to his mother.
“Mom, they need to speak with you.””
Loretta took it with both hands.
“This is Loretta Carter,” she said softly.
“I'm the account holder.””
The bank representative asked her several verification questions. Loretta answered each one carefully, occasionally pausing to wipe her palms against her cardigan.
When the representative asked whether she had authorized Brielle to access her records, Loretta's voice became steadier.
“No. I did not.””
Marcus watched his mother straighten her shoulders.
It was a small change, but he recognized it.
For the first time that afternoon, she wasn't apologizing.
When the call ended, Loretta returned the phone to Marcus.
“They said they'd investigate,” she told him.
“Good.””
Brielle gave a bitter laugh.
“Congratulations. You've made your own mother feel like a criminal investigation is more important than family.””
Loretta looked directly at her.
“You made me feel like a servant in my son's home.””
Brielle fell silent.
“You asked me to wash dishes while your guests watched,” Loretta continued.
“You wore a dress I never agreed to buy. And when I questioned you, you told everyone I was confused.””
Her voice trembled, but she didn't stop.
“I spent my entire life teaching Marcus to respect people, especially when they couldn't do anything for him. I never imagined I'd have to ask his fiancée to do the same.””
A few guests lowered their eyes.
Brielle's lips pressed into a thin line.
“You're making me sound like a monster.””
“No,” Loretta said.
“I'm telling you what you did.””
Vanessa stepped beside her.
“I think Loretta deserves an apology.””
Brielle turned toward her.
“You're enjoying this, aren't you?””
“No. I'm disappointed in you.””
“After everything I've done for you?””
Vanessa's face hardened.
“You mean the vacations you expected me to split with you? The shopping trips you called emergencies? The times you borrowed money and told me your bank was processing a transfer?””
Brielle's expression changed.
Marcus noticed immediately.
“Borrowed money?”” he asked.
Vanessa hesitated.
“Almost eight thousand dollars over the last year. She told me she was having temporary cash-flow problems.””
Brielle shook her head violently.
“This is none of your business!””
“You made it my business when you asked me to lie about where that dress came from,” Vanessa replied.
Marcus turned toward her.
“When did she ask you to lie?””
“Three weeks ago. She told me that if anyone asked, I should say her aunt paid for the dress.””
Brielle looked around desperately.
“That's not what happened!””
Vanessa took a breath.
“She also asked me whether I knew anyone who could help her get access to a large account without waiting for the account holder to complete the normal verification process.””
The room went still.
Marcus felt a chill run down his spine.
“Whose account?””
Vanessa looked at Loretta.
“She didn't give me the name. She said it belonged to someone who trusted her.””
Brielle stepped toward Vanessa.
“That's enough!””
“No,” Marcus said sharply.
“Keep talking.””
Vanessa swallowed.
“She said she needed the money before the wedding. She said once she and Marcus were married, everything would be easier.””
Marcus stared at his fiancée.
“What did you mean by that?””
Brielle shook her head.
“I didn't mean anything.””
“Vanessa just told us you were looking for a way to access someone's account.””
“She misunderstood me!””
“Then explain what you meant.””
Brielle looked at him, her eyes shining.
“I wanted security, Marcus. That's all. I wanted to know we could afford the life we planned.””
“We can afford our life. You wanted more than that.””
She started crying again.
“You promised you'd take care of me!””
“I promised to marry you. I didn't promise to let you take advantage of my mother.””
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Loretta reached for Marcus's hand.
“Sweetheart,” she said, “there's something I haven't told you.””
He turned toward her.
“What is it?””
She looked toward the kitchen, where the receipt still lay on the counter beside the empty dishwater tub.
“Three weeks ago, when I discovered that my card had been replaced, I called the bank. They told me there had been several attempted transactions.””
Marcus's stomach tightened.
“How many?””
“Four that I knew about.””
Brielle stopped crying.
Loretta continued.
“The woman on the phone asked whether I recognized a transfer request connected to a business account. I told her I didn't have a business account.””
Marcus looked at the financial document in his hand.
“What business account?””
Loretta shook her head.
“I don't know. But the bank said the request involved a company registered under a name I recognized.””
“Which name?””
Loretta looked at Brielle.
Then she whispered, “Your father's old company.””
Marcus froze.
His father had died twenty-seven years earlier.
The small construction business he'd built had been dissolved long ago, leaving Marcus with little more than a few photographs and his father's battered toolbox.
Or so Marcus had always believed.
He turned to Brielle.
“How do you know anything about my father's company?””
Brielle's face had gone completely white.
She backed toward the living room.
Marcus took one step forward.
“Brielle, what did you do?””
She looked at the guests, then at Loretta.
Finally, she looked directly at Marcus.
“I didn't start this,” she whispered.
Marcus's voice dropped.
“Then who did?””
Brielle reached into her handbag and pulled out a folded document.
She held it against her chest.
“Your father left something behind,” she said.
“Something your mother never told you about.””
May you like
And when Marcus reached for the paper, Brielle pulled it away.
“Before you read this,” she whispered, “you need to understand why your mother has been lying to you for twenty-seven years.””
