Chapter 9: Daniel's Wife Knew the Truth
Olivia Price sat in the mansion's small reception room with both hands wrapped around a cup of untouched tea.
She looked ten years older than she had the last time I saw her.
Her blond hair was pulled into a loose knot, and her coat was buttoned incorrectly. A red mark crossed one wrist, as though she had recently struggled to remove something.
When I entered, she rose immediately.
"Margaret.""
I crossed the room and took her hands.
"Olivia, what happened?""
She glanced toward Richard and Ethan.
"Can we speak privately?""
Richard shook his head gently.
"Given the circumstances, I recommend that we keep the conversation documented. You can tell us what you know, and we will make sure your concerns are handled appropriately.""
Olivia swallowed.
Then she looked at me.
"Daniel is in trouble.""
I pulled out a chair.
"Please sit down.""
She obeyed.
For several seconds, she stared at the cup in front of her.
Finally, she said, "He left the house this afternoon with a folder. He told me he was going to meet a client. When he came back, he was frightened.""
"What time was that?""
"A little after five.""
"Did he tell you where he had been?""
"He said he'd been to Belle Meade.""
I exchanged a glance with Richard.
Olivia continued.
"He wouldn't tell me why. He kept asking whether anyone had called the house. Then he went into his study and locked the door.""
"What happened after that?"" Ethan asked.
Olivia looked at him.
"At seven thirty, he received a phone call. I heard him say, 'No, you promised this would be finished tonight.'' Then he said, 'I can't keep doing this.''"
My stomach tightened.
"Did you hear the other person?""
"No. Daniel had the phone against his ear.""
"Did he say a name?""
She nodded.
"George.""
Richard took out his notebook.
"Did you hear anything else?""
Olivia closed her eyes, trying to remember.
"He said, 'If Margaret finds out, everything is over.'' Then he went silent for a long time.""
She looked at me.
"After the call, I asked him what was happening. He told me it was a business problem and that I shouldn't worry.""
"Did you believe him?""
"No.""
The answer came immediately.
Olivia pressed her hands together.
"Margaret, I have been married to Daniel for thirty-two years. I know when he's hiding something. He's always been a careful man, but tonight he was terrified.""
Richard leaned forward.
"Did he tell you what the problem was?""
"He said someone had used company documents without authorization. He said he thought he could correct it before anyone was hurt.""
"Did he admit to participating?""
Olivia looked down.
"Not directly.""
I felt a cold knot forming in my stomach.
"Olivia, I need you to tell us everything you remember. Even if you think it makes Daniel look bad.""
She nodded.
"Before he left, he asked me where we kept the old company correspondence from our home office. He wanted to know whether I'd thrown away a box of papers from last year.""
"Did you?""
"No. I keep most of our important documents in a locked cabinet.""
"Why?""
"Because Daniel has always told me to keep financial records. He says you never know when you'll need them.""
Richard made a note.
"Where is the cabinet?""
"At our house.""
"Is Daniel there now?""
"No. When I went into his study after the call, his laptop was gone. So was the spare phone he keeps in his desk.""
Ethan frowned.
"Did he leave a message?""
Olivia shook her head.
"But I found something.""
She opened her handbag and removed a small, folded piece of paper.
Richard asked her to place it on the table rather than hand it directly to him.
He photographed it, then unfolded it carefully.
The paper contained a short handwritten list of company names.
Bellhaven Property Ventures.
Mitchell Strategic Partners.
Carter Holdings.
And beneath them, a fourth name.
Northstar Fiduciary Services.
I recognized it.
Northstar was an outside firm that handled specialized escrow and transaction administration for several regional businesses. Carter Holdings had used it years earlier for a property acquisition, but our relationship had ended after the transaction closed.
Richard studied the page.
"Where did you find this?""
"In Daniel's desk drawer. He must have written it tonight.""
"Do you know what the names mean?""
"No. But one of them appeared in an email he received last week.""
"What did the email say?""
Olivia took a breath.
"It said the final authorization would be accepted only after the account records were verified by Northstar.""
Richard's expression changed.
"Do you have that email?""
"No. Daniel deleted it, but I took a photograph of the screen before he did.""
She opened her phone and searched through her photographs.
Her fingers trembled.
Finally, she turned the screen toward Richard.
The image showed a short email with a subject line reading: *FINAL AUTHORIZATION — MONDAY DEADLINE.*
The message contained only a few sentences.
The transfer cannot proceed until the authorization records are reconciled. Confirm that the original mandate is available. Once the verification is complete, the remaining instructions can be processed.
At the bottom was a sender address associated with Northstar Fiduciary Services.
Richard read it twice.
"This does not establish that Northstar participated in wrongdoing," he said.
"But it gives us a concrete lead.""
I looked at Olivia.
"Why did you come here tonight?""
She swallowed.
"Because Daniel told me to stay away from the police.""
Ethan stared at her.
"What?""
"He said that if I went to the authorities before he could explain what happened, I might make things worse. But then he disappeared, and I found a message on his laptop before it was taken.""
Richard leaned forward.
"What message?""
Olivia's eyes filled with tears.
"It was a draft email. He hadn't sent it.""
She took another paper from her handbag.
The message was handwritten on the back of an envelope, apparently copied from the computer before she left home.
She pushed it across the table.
Richard read it silently.
Then he passed it to me.
The draft said:
I cannot proceed with the second authorization. The signature is not hers. George promised that no funds would move until Margaret approved the transaction, but the instructions have already been circulated. I will not take responsibility for this.
Beneath the message was Daniel's name.
I stared at the words.
"He knew," Ethan whispered.
Olivia nodded.
"I think he did.""
"Did he tell you who created the forged signature?"" Richard asked.
"No.""
"Did he say whether Vanessa was involved?""
Olivia hesitated.
"Not in those words.""
"What did he say?""
She looked directly at me.
"He said George had convinced his daughter that the marriage would solve their financial problems. He said Vanessa had been asking questions about your company for months.""
Ethan closed his eyes.
Olivia continued.
"But Daniel also said something that frightened me. He said Vanessa wasn't the only person who knew about the agreement.""
I felt my pulse quicken.
"Who else?""
"I don't know. He wouldn't tell me.""
Richard took the papers and carefully placed them in a folder.
"Olivia, we need to preserve the original records at your home. Please don't return there alone tonight. If you believe someone may have been watching Daniel, we should arrange a safe way for you to retrieve anything relevant.""
She nodded.
"I was afraid you'd say that.""
Ethan stood and walked to the window.
For a long time, he stared into the dark garden.
Then he turned around.
"Olivia, do you believe Daniel was trying to stop the transfer?""
She looked at him with exhausted eyes.
"I believe he realized he had gone too far. Whether he was trying to stop it because he finally understood the damage, or because he was afraid of being caught, I can't tell you.""
It was an honest answer.
And it was more useful than a comforting lie.
Richard received a message and read it quickly.
"The bank has confirmed that the disputed transfer remains blocked. The company is also securing the remaining authorization records.""
I released a breath I hadn't realized I was holding.
"Good.""
But Richard's relief was brief.
He looked at Olivia.
"Did Daniel mention a meeting scheduled for Monday?""
She nodded.
"He said it was the deadline. Whatever had been arranged, it had to be completed by Monday morning.""
"Did he say why?""
"No.""
Richard glanced at me.
Monday was less than forty-eight hours away.
If the forged agreement was part of a larger scheme, the people behind it might now be desperate to secure whatever they could before the evidence caught up with them.
I looked at the list of companies.
Bellhaven.
Mitchell Strategic Partners.
Carter Holdings.
Northstar Fiduciary Services.
Four names connected by a transaction that nobody had yet fully explained.
And somewhere in the middle of it all was Daniel Price, a man who had helped build the financial systems of my company and might now be the key to understanding how those systems had been misused.
My phone rang.
The caller ID showed an unknown number.
I answered without speaking.
A man's voice came through, low and hurried.
"Mrs. Carter?""
"Who is this?""
"You don't know me. But I work with Northstar Fiduciary Services.""
Richard moved closer.
"What do you want?""
The man sounded frightened.
"I saw your name on the disputed authorization documents. I think you need to know that the transfer request wasn't the real objective.""
I gripped the phone.
"What was the real objective?""
He paused.
Then he said, "The money was only supposed to be temporary. The plan was to use the transfer to trigger a clause in a separate agreement—one that would give Bellhaven the right to acquire several Carter Holdings properties at a fraction of their value.""
Richard's expression went rigid.
"Who drafted that agreement?""
"I can't tell you over the phone.""
"Then tell us where to find you.""
The man ignored the question.
"There's one more thing you need to know. The original agreement wasn't signed by George Mitchell.""
I stared at the phone.
"What do you mean?""
"The person who authorized the transaction was someone inside Carter Holdings. Someone with the power to certify the documents as genuine.""
My heart began pounding.
"Who?""
A sound came through the line, like a door opening.
The man whispered, "Check the board's emergency authorization register.""
Then the call ended.
Richard immediately tried to call the number back, but it went straight to voicemail.
Ethan stepped away from the window.
"What did he say?""
I repeated the conversation.
Richard was already opening his laptop.
"The emergency authorization register records who can approve specific actions when the chief executive is unavailable. Only a small number of people have that authority.""
"Who?"" I asked.
He looked up.
"Three people besides you.""
I knew the names.
Helen Brooks, our chief operating officer.
Daniel Price, our chief financial officer.
And Thomas Reed, the chairman of the board's audit committee.
Thomas had been my friend for twenty-two years.
He had advised me after Daniel's death, helped me negotiate two major acquisitions, and stood beside me when I faced the most difficult vote of my career.
I looked at Richard.
"Find out whether any of them authorized the disputed transaction.""
He began typing.
Seconds later, his face went pale.
"What is it?"" Ethan asked.
Richard turned the laptop toward us.
The emergency authorization register showed that a temporary approval had been entered at 7:36 p.m.
The entry listed a verification code and the name of the approving officer.
Thomas Reed.
But the most disturbing detail was the timestamp.
At 7:36 p.m., Thomas had been recorded as approving the authorization from Carter Holdings' headquarters.
According to the building's access records, he had not entered the building that evening.
He had been at home.
I stared at the screen.
Then another notification appeared.
It was an email from Thomas.
The subject line read: *URGENT — DO NOT TRUST DANIEL PRICE.*
I opened it.
The message contained only one sentence.
Margaret, I have evidence that will prove who forged your signature, but if I tell you what I found, the person behind this scheme may come after your son.
I looked up at Ethan.
He stood perfectly still.
May you like
For the first time that night, I understood that the danger might be much closer than we had imagined.
And whoever had engineered this scheme was willing to use my son's future as leverage.
