Chapter 5: The Signature of My Best Friend
For a moment, I couldn't hear anything except the ticking clock above the kitchen doorway.
Olivia stood beside me, her face pale.
I looked from the document to her.
“Tell me that's not your signature.””
She swallowed.
“It's my signature.””
My stomach twisted.
“You signed a document giving Marcus access to my inheritance?””
“No. I signed something else.””
“What?””
“A witness statement.””
I pushed the paper toward her.
“This is a witness statement confirming that I personally authorized a power of attorney.””
“I know what it says.””
“Then explain why your name is on it.””
Olivia sat down heavily.
Eleanor remained standing near the kitchen counter, watching her with unmistakable suspicion.
Olivia rubbed her forehead.
“Three weeks ago, Marcus called me. He said you were having trouble with the estate paperwork and didn't want to bother you with more legal appointments.””
I laughed once.
It wasn't amusement.
It was disbelief.
“And you believed him?””
“He told me you had already signed everything. He only needed someone to confirm that the documents had been witnessed properly.””
“You never saw me sign them.””
“I know.””
“You never asked me?””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I should have.””
I stepped away from the table.
“You were my maid of honor, Olivia. You were supposed to stand beside me while I married him. You helped me pick the flowers. You listened to me talk about how excited I was to start a family with him.””
“I know.””
“And all this time, you were helping him steal from me?””
“No!”” She stood abruptly.
“Nia, I swear I didn't know what he was planning.””
Eleanor interrupted.
“Your signature appears on two separate documents.””
Olivia turned toward her.
“What?””
“One was submitted three weeks ago. The second was submitted yesterday morning.””
Olivia shook her head.
“I didn't sign anything yesterday.””
Eleanor placed another page on the table.
The signature looked identical to the first.
Olivia covered her mouth.
“Someone copied it.””
I stared at the documents.
There was something worse than discovering that strangers wanted to hurt you.
It was discovering that the people closest to you had been placed in a position where their actions could destroy you.
I wanted to believe Olivia.
But I couldn't afford to confuse wanting something with knowing it was true.
“Why did Marcus call you?”” I asked.
Olivia hesitated.
“He said he needed help because you were getting suspicious.””
My eyes narrowed.
“When?””
“Last Friday.””
“What did I do?””
“He said you had started asking questions about the company accounts.””
I remembered that conversation.
Marcus had been unusually irritated when I asked why several properties had been transferred between subsidiaries.
He told me I was worrying about things I didn't understand.
Then he kissed my forehead and promised he would handle everything after the wedding.
Olivia continued.
“He told me you were stressed. He said if I could help him get the paperwork finished, you wouldn't have to deal with it.””
“And you agreed?””
“I thought I was helping you.””
I looked down.
“Did he pay you?””
Her silence answered before she did.
My throat tightened.
“Olivia.””
She began crying.
“He gave me twenty thousand dollars.””
The room went still.
I stared at her.
“Why?””
“My brother's medical bills.””
I looked at her for a long moment.
Her younger brother, Ethan, had been seriously injured in a motorcycle accident the previous year. Olivia had spent months trying to cover his rehabilitation expenses.
I knew she was struggling.
I had offered to help more than once.
She had always refused.
“You could have asked me,” I said.
“I know.””
“I would have helped you.””
“I know, Nia.””
“Then why did you take money from him?””
Olivia wiped her cheeks.
“Because Marcus told me it was an advance from the company. He said you had approved it and that you'd never know I was involved.””
I felt something crack inside my chest.
“You accepted money from my fiancé without telling me.””
“Yes.””
“And you knew he was trying to get my signature.””
“I didn't know what he was doing until yesterday.””
I looked at Eleanor.
“Can we verify whether she's telling the truth?””
Eleanor nodded.
“We can compare the document metadata and contact the financial institution that processed the payment. But we need the original records.””
Olivia quickly reached into her handbag.
“I have something.””
She pulled out her phone.
“I kept the messages.””
She opened a conversation with Marcus and placed the phone on the table.
The first message was dated three weeks earlier.
*Marcus:* I need you to confirm something for me. Nia already knows about the estate documents.
*Olivia:* What exactly am I confirming?
*Marcus:* That she signed them in your presence.
*Olivia:* But she didn't.
*Marcus:* It's just a formality. Don't make this complicated.
The next message was worse.
*Marcus:* Your brother's treatment isn't cheap, Olivia. I'm trying to help you.
Olivia's face crumpled.
“I was stupid.””
I looked at her.
“You were desperate. But you still made a choice.””
She nodded.
“I know.””
Eleanor took several photographs of the messages.
“Keep everything. Don't delete anything. From this moment forward, don't contact Marcus.””
Olivia nodded.
Then she looked at me.
“There's something else.””
I closed my eyes briefly.
“Of course there is.””
“Marcus asked me to give him something from your apartment.””
“What?””
“Your father's old leather document case.””
I went completely still.
I knew exactly which one she meant.
It had been in my father's study for as long as I could remember. After he died, I brought it to my apartment because it contained some of his personal papers.
I had never opened it.
“Why would he want that?””
Olivia looked frightened.
“He said it contained an original shareholder certificate. He told me that if he couldn't get the estate documents signed, he needed the certificate instead.””
Eleanor's expression changed.
“Did you give it to him?””
“No.””
“Are you sure?””
Olivia nodded.
“I never touched it.””
I pulled out my phone and called my building manager.
“Mr. Harris, this is Nia Carter. I need you to check my apartment immediately.””
He sounded surprised.
“Is everything all right?””
“Has anyone entered my apartment today?””
A pause.
“Actually, Ms. Carter, there was a man here this afternoon.””
My blood ran cold.
“What man?””
“He said he was your fiancé. He told me you had authorized him to collect some personal belongings.””
I gripped the phone.
“Did you let him in?””
“He had a key.””
I closed my eyes.
Marcus still had a key to my apartment.
“Did he leave?””
“Yes. About twenty minutes ago.””
I looked at Eleanor.
She was already reaching for her coat.
“Tell me exactly what he took,” I said.
The manager hesitated.
“I don't know. But he carried out a black leather briefcase.””
My father's document case.
The line went silent.
Then Mr. Harris added something.
“Ms. Carter, there's something else. He wasn't alone.””
I opened my eyes.
“Who was with him?””
“The woman who visited you last week. The one you introduced as your aunt.””
I stared at the phone.
I had no aunt who visited me last week.
At least, none who was supposed to be involved in my father's estate.
“Can you describe her?””
The manager gave me a description.
I recognized it immediately.
Diane Reed.
Marcus's mother.
Eleanor slowly lowered her coat.
“That's impossible,” she whispered.
I looked at her.
“Why?””
She reached into her handbag and removed an old photograph.
It showed my father standing with Diane at a company event.
On the back, he had written a date.
It was two months before his death.
Eleanor's voice dropped.
“Because Diane wasn't just Marcus's mother.””
May you like
She turned the photograph toward me.
“She was your father's financial director.””
