Part 7
The study was lined with dark oak bookshelves.
My late husband's desk sat in the center of the room.
Felicia had covered it with her own leather folders and gold pens.
Richard Vance walked in first.
He didn't look amused anymore.
He looked like a man who smelled a bad investment.
Cassandra closed the door behind us, shutting out the noise of the party.
She locked it.
"Eleanor," Cassandra said. Her voice was a low hiss.
"I don't know what kind of game you're playing."
"But you are embarrassing your son."
"Am I, Derek?" I asked, looking at him.
Derek walked past them and stood right beside my chair.
"No, Mom," he said. "You're not."
Felicia stepped toward Derek. Her eyes were wide, welling with fake tears.
"Derek, honey, what is she doing?"
"She's confused."
"The stress of the holidays... she's losing her mind."
"Stop it, Felicia," Derek said.
The tone of his voice made her freeze.
It wasn't the voice of the boy she had been manipulating for months.
It was cold. Definitive.
I sat down behind my husband's desk.
I reached into my bag and pulled out three things.
The true apartment lease.
The bank statements showing the sixty thousand dollar transfer.
And the manila envelope from Maya.
I laid them out neatly on the dark wood.
"Mr. Vance," I said, looking at the developer.
"My name is Eleanor Parker."
"I am the sole owner of this property."
"The Caldwell family has never owned a single brick of this house."
Vance stared at me, then looked at the documents on the desk.
"What is this?" he asked, stepping forward.
"Don't touch those!" Cassandra snapped, reaching out.
But Vance ignored her. He picked up the paperwork.
He scanned the corporate filings for Caldwell Property Holdings.
His eyes narrowed as he saw the name Maya Lin and the internal transaction logs.
"Felicia," Vance said, his voice dropping an octave.
"You told me this company had forty percent equity in this estate."
"You showed me a deed."
"She showed you a forgery, Mr. Vance," I said calmly.
"Or rather, a draft of a forgery they intended to file after getting your money."
I pointed to the Quitclaim Deed.
"They have a notary ready to sign my name."
Felicia's face went completely pale.
The elegant, confident woman from the driveway was gone.
She looked small. Trap-bound.
"This is a lie!" Felicia shouted. She looked at Derek.
"Derek, tell him! We talked about this! We were going to merge the assets!"
"We never talked about this," Derek said.
"You told me the sixty thousand dollars was for an apartment deposit."
"The deposit was only twelve thousand."
"Where is the rest of my money, Felicia?"
Felicia shook her head, backing away. "I... I invested it."
"In the company! For our future!"
"You invested it in a shell company to trick Mr. Vance," Derek said.
Cassandra stepped in front of her sister. She looked at me with pure hatred.
"You think you're very clever, Eleanor."
"But you have no proof of anything criminal."
"A draft of a deed isn't a crime."
"An investment dispute between a couple isn't a crime."
"Mr. Vance, this is a family matter that has gotten out of hand."
"The contract we are signing tonight is completely separate."
Richard Vance let out a dry, mocking laugh.
He tossed the papers back onto the desk.
"Separate?" Vance said.
"Cassandra, I've been in real estate for thirty years."
"I know a fraud when I see one."
"You used a fake asset to secure my capital."
"If I had signed that contract tonight, my lawyers would be hunting you by morning."
He turned toward the door.
"The deal is off."
"And I am going to make a few phone calls to the licensing board."
"Wait, Richard, please!" Felicia cried, reaching for his arm.
Vance pulled away violently.
"Don't touch me," he growled.
"You're lucky I don't call the police right now."
He unlocked the door, opened it, and walked out.
Through the open door, we could hear the music from the party still playing.
The guests were still laughing.
But inside the study, the air was suffocating.
Cassandra turned her glare back to me.
"You just ruined your son's life," she whispered.
"No," I replied, standing up.
May you like
"I just saved it."
"Now, both of you get out of my house."
