Chapter 8: The Woman Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Ruthie gripped the edge of the desk.
“The woman who wrote the ledger,” she whispered.
Devereux turned toward her.
“Mom, who are you talking about?””
Ruthie didn't answer immediately. She walked to the bookcase, moved aside a framed photograph, and reached for a thin black folder tucked behind a row of accounting manuals.
Her fingers hesitated over the spine.
Then she pulled it free.
Inside was a faded staff photograph from the foundation's early years. Six people stood outside the original office building, smiling beneath a hand-painted sign.
Ruthie pointed to the woman at the far left.
“Evelyn Price.””
Vivian leaned closer.
“The former controller?””
Ruthie nodded.
“Evelyn kept the foundation's books for nearly fifteen years. She knew every donation, every grant, every investment. When my husband began questioning Victor's transactions, Evelyn helped him reconstruct the accounts.””
Devereux studied the photograph.
“I thought she moved to Georgia.””
“She did,” Ruthie said.
“Or so I was told.””
Caroline looked up sharply.
“What do you mean?””
Ruthie opened the folder to a folded letter.
“Evelyn sent this to me six months before she disappeared from our records. She said she had discovered irregularities in the investment accounts and needed to speak with my husband privately.””
“Did you meet with her?”” Vivian asked.
“No. By the time I replied, Victor told me she had resigned and moved away. Then, shortly after my husband died, I received a message saying Evelyn had passed away.””
Devereux frowned.
“Who told you that?””
“Victor.””
Ruthie stared at the letter.
“He said her family had requested privacy. I never questioned him because I was grieving, and he presented what looked like official paperwork.””
Lenora raised her tablet.
“Do you still have that paperwork?””
Ruthie opened another section of the folder.
A photocopy of a death notice lay beneath the letter. It contained a name, a date, and a funeral home address.
Vivian studied it.
“This doesn't establish that Evelyn died.””
“No,” Ruthie replied.
“But I had no reason to believe Victor would lie about something so serious.””
Caroline slowly sat in the chair beside the desk.
“He told me the same thing.””
Everyone turned toward her.
“What?”” Devereux asked.
“Victor said Evelyn was dead. He told me she had taken confidential records when she left, and that her disappearance was one of the reasons the foundation's accounts needed to be reviewed.””
Vivian's eyes narrowed.
“Why would he discuss Evelyn with you?””
“Because he said the records were connected to my consulting agreement.””
Caroline reached into her clutch and removed another folded document.
“I brought this because I was afraid he might try to blame me for something. I didn't know what it meant.””
Devereux stared at the paper.
“How many documents have you been carrying around without telling me?””
She flinched.
“Too many.””
Ruthie accepted the document.
It was a copy of Caroline's consulting agreement, printed on the letterhead of Mercer Advisory Group. Beneath the consulting fee was a clause granting the company temporary access to selected historical foundation records.
But someone had added a handwritten note in the margin.
*EP — ORIGINAL LEDGER — HOLD UNTIL RELEASE.*
Ruthie felt her pulse quicken.
“Evelyn Price.””
Lenora photographed the page.
Vivian took out her phone.
“I'm contacting the police now.””
As she dialed, a sound came from the hallway.
Three firm knocks.
The security officer appeared in the doorway.
“Mrs. Mae, there's a woman downstairs asking to see you. She says her name is Evelyn Price.””
Ruthie stopped breathing.
Devereux looked at his mother.
“That's impossible.””
The officer continued.
“She says she's been trying to contact you for months. She also says she has evidence involving Victor Mercer.””
Ruthie gripped the desk so tightly her knuckles whitened.
“Bring her up.””
“Mrs. Mae, security recommends—”
“Bring her up,” Ruthie repeated.
“And make sure no one follows her into this office without being identified.””
The officer nodded and hurried away.
For the first time that evening, Caroline looked genuinely relieved.
“Maybe she can explain everything.””
Devereux didn't look at her.
“Maybe.””
Ruthie stood beside the desk, staring at the open doorway.
She remembered Evelyn's laugh, her careful handwriting, the way she used to bring homemade peach cobbler to the office whenever the foundation secured a major donation.
She also remembered the last time they had spoken.
Evelyn had stood in this very room, holding a stack of financial statements.
Ruthie, if anything happens to me, don't let Victor control the records.
At the time, Ruthie had told her not to speak so dramatically.
Now she wished she had listened.
Footsteps approached.
A woman entered the office wearing a navy coat and carrying a worn leather satchel. Her hair was shorter than Ruthie remembered, and faint lines marked her face, but her eyes were unmistakable.
Evelyn Price.
She stopped just inside the doorway.
For several seconds, neither woman spoke.
Then Evelyn removed her gloves.
“Hello, Ruthie.””
Ruthie's eyes filled.
“You let me believe you were dead.””
Evelyn lowered her gaze.
“I know.””
“Do you have any idea what that did to me?””
“I do. And I'm sorry.””
“Sorry?”” Ruthie's voice trembled.
“I mourned you. I believed Victor when he told me you had died.””
Evelyn looked at her.
“That's why I stayed away. I couldn't risk letting him know I was alive.””
Devereux stepped forward.
“Who threatened you?””
“Victor.””
“What did he do?””
Evelyn set her satchel on the desk.
“He discovered that I had reconstructed the original investment ledger. When I refused to alter the numbers, he threatened my family and accused me of stealing records.””
Vivian folded her arms.
“Why didn't you go to the authorities?””
“I tried. The first attorney I contacted had already received documents suggesting I was responsible for the missing funds. I realized Victor had prepared a story in advance.””
Ruthie stared at her.
“And you disappeared?””
“I moved between relatives, changed my phone number, and waited until I could obtain copies of the original records. I didn't want to return with allegations. I wanted proof.””
She opened the satchel and removed a thick ledger wrapped in brown paper.
The room went silent.
“The original,” Evelyn said.
Ruthie reached toward it.
Evelyn held it back for a moment.
“Before you open this, you need to understand something. Victor wasn't working alone.””
Devereux's face hardened.
“Who helped him?””
Evelyn looked around the room.
Her gaze passed over Vivian, Lenora, Caroline, and finally settled on Devereux.
“Someone inside this family provided him with the access he needed.””
Devereux shook his head.
“No.””
Evelyn's expression remained sorrowful.
“I wish I could tell you otherwise.””
Ruthie opened the ledger.
Rows of transactions filled the pages, each accompanied by dates, authorization codes, and handwritten notes.
Near the back, one entry had been marked with a red line.
The transfer amount matched the missing scholarship funds.
Beside it was an authorization number.
Devereux stared at the number.
“That belongs to my account.””
Evelyn nodded.
“Your preliminary authorization was used to create the transfer.””
“I never approved that.””
“I believe you.””
Devereux looked up, startled.
Evelyn turned another page.
“But the transaction wasn't completed by Victor alone.””
She placed her finger on a second signature.
Ruthie leaned forward.
It was a name she recognized immediately.
Vivian Brooks.
Vivian stepped back.
“No,” she whispered.
“That signature is not mine.””
Evelyn closed the ledger.
“Then someone forged yours, too.””
Before anyone could respond, the security officer rushed into the room.
“Mrs. Mae, we've got a problem.””
Ruthie turned.
“What now?””
“The woman who brought the envelope to the gala has been identified. She left the building ten minutes ago.””
Devereux frowned.
“What woman?””
The officer looked at Caroline.
“The woman who signed the delivery log.””
Caroline's face drained of color.
“I never signed any delivery log.””
The officer checked his phone.
“The signature belongs to someone named Caroline Mae.””
Devereux slowly turned toward his wife.
Caroline shook her head, tears streaming down her face.
“I swear I didn't.””
Evelyn looked at the ledger, then at Caroline.
“Victor has a copy of your signature,” she said quietly.
“And if he has been preparing this for months, he may have something far worse than a forged document.””
She opened the ledger to the final page.
There, in Ruthie's husband's handwriting, was a single sentence:
*IF CAROLINE IS NAMED, FIND OUT WHO HAS BEEN USING HER IDENTITY.*
Ruthie looked at her daughter-in-law.
May you like
Caroline could barely stand.
And Devereux realized that the woman he had married might be hiding a secret she hadn't even known someone else could use against her.
