Chapter 2: The Money Meant for Nia
Marcus didn't raise his voice.
That was what frightened Vanessa most.
He simply stood in the middle of the living room, holding his daughter's hand, and looked at his wife as though he were seeing her for the first time.
“Vanessa, I'm asking you one more time. What money is Ava talking about?””
Vanessa adjusted the gold bracelet on her wrist.
“Your daughter's grandmother sends birthday gifts. That's all.””
“That's not what I asked.””
“Marcus, we're not doing this in front of the children.””
He glanced toward Caleb and Ava.
“Actually, we are. They're the ones who brought it up.””
Caleb looked uncomfortable.
“Dad, I didn't mean to cause trouble.””
Marcus crouched beside him.
“You haven't caused anything, son. Telling the truth isn't causing trouble.””
Caleb nodded, but his eyes remained fixed on Vanessa.
Marcus turned toward his wife.
“Call my mother-in-law.””
Vanessa laughed bitterly.
“Why don't you call her yourself?””
“I will. But first, I'd like to know why my daughter believes money intended for her has disappeared.””
Vanessa picked up a cushion and placed it back on the sofa.
“Your mother-in-law has always treated me like an outsider. She sends money and makes sure everyone knows it's for Nia. What was I supposed to feel?””
Marcus stared at her.
“You were supposed to respect it.””
“I live here. I raise her. I cook for her. I make sure she has everything.””
“You just tried to throw her out.””
“That was one argument!””
“No. It was a decision you made when you thought I wouldn't be here to stop you.””
Vanessa looked away.
Marcus took Nia upstairs.
He wanted to get her away from the argument, but he also needed to see whether anything else had been disturbed.
Her bedroom was at the end of the hallway.
The door was half open.
Inside, her pink bedspread was folded neatly, her schoolbooks were arranged on the desk, and the small framed photograph of her mother was missing.
Marcus stopped.
“Sweetheart, where's Mommy's picture?””
Nia pointed toward the suitcase.
“Vanessa put it inside.””
He opened the suitcase.
Her clothes were crumpled together. Her school uniform had been shoved beneath a pair of shoes. Her toothbrush was wrapped in a plastic grocery bag.
At the very bottom lay the photograph.
Marcus lifted it carefully.
It showed his late wife, Elena, holding a laughing three-year-old Nia at the beach.
He brushed a small piece of lint from the glass.
“I'm sorry, baby.””
Nia looked up at him.
“Are you mad at me?””
Marcus immediately knelt.
“Never. Not for one second.””
“Because I cried?””
He took both her hands.
“You can cry whenever you need to. You can be angry. You can tell me when someone hurts your feelings. None of that will ever make me stop loving you.””
Nia's eyes filled again.
“Can I sleep in your room tonight?””
“Of course.””
She hesitated.
“Even if Vanessa doesn't like it?””
Marcus kissed her forehead.
“Especially then.””
He put the photograph back on her nightstand and tucked the teddy bear beside her pillow.
Then he called his mother-in-law.
Margaret Collins answered on the second ring.
“Marcus? Is everything all right?””
“Margaret, I need to ask you something. Have you been sending money for Nia?””
There was a pause.
“Yes. Every month.””
Marcus closed his eyes.
“How much?””
“Five thousand dollars.””
His eyes opened.
“Five thousand?””
“Marcus, we discussed this after Elena passed away. I wanted to make sure Nia had a secure education fund. I know you work hard, but I didn't want her future depending on circumstances.””
Marcus remembered the conversation.
Margaret had offered to contribute toward a trust for Nia shortly after Elena's funeral. He had thanked her and agreed.
He had never asked Vanessa to manage it.
“Where have you been sending it?””
“To the account number Vanessa gave me.””
Marcus went still.
“Vanessa gave you the account number?””
“Yes. She said you wanted her to handle the paperwork because you were overwhelmed with work.””
He gripped the phone.
“Do you still have the details?””
“Of course. Why?””
“Please send them to me.””
Margaret's voice softened.
“Marcus, what's happened?””
He looked toward Nia's bedroom.
“I'm afraid someone has been taking money that belongs to your granddaughter.””
Margaret fell silent.
Then she said something that made the situation even worse.
“Marcus, I didn't send money only to her savings account.””
“What do you mean?””
“I also sent a separate amount for her medical expenses and school activities. Vanessa told me you had asked her to organize everything.””
Marcus felt cold.
“How long?””
“Almost three years.””
Three years.
He ended the call after promising to speak with her again.
Then he walked downstairs.
Vanessa was standing at the kitchen island, drinking water from a crystal glass.
She looked up.
“Have you finished interrogating everyone?””
Marcus placed his phone on the counter.
“Margaret says she's been sending five thousand dollars every month for Nia.””
Vanessa took another sip.
“So?””
“Where is it?””
“Probably in the account.””
“Which account?””
“Our household account.””
Marcus stared at her.
“You put my daughter's inheritance into our household account?””
“It wasn't an inheritance. It was help.””
“It was money designated for Nia.””
Vanessa placed the glass down.
“And who do you think has been paying for the food she eats? The electricity? The house? The clothes she wears?””
“I pay for those things.””
“You pay the mortgage and think that makes you a father?””
The words hung between them.
Marcus took a slow breath.
“Don't confuse my responsibilities with your decisions.””
Vanessa crossed her arms.
“Your daughter costs money, Marcus. You act as though she's some priceless little princess.””
“She is my daughter.””
“And I'm your wife!””
“Then behave like one.””
Vanessa's cheeks flushed.
She turned away, opened a cabinet, and pulled out a folder.
“Fine. You want paperwork? Here.””
She threw it onto the counter.
Inside were bank statements, transfer confirmations, and several printed documents.
Marcus began examining them.
At first, the figures looked ordinary.
Then he noticed the account number.
It wasn't their joint account.
It belonged to a company called Vantage Lifestyle Consulting.
He turned the page.
There were monthly transfers from Margaret's account into the company account.
The money was then moved into several other accounts.
Marcus looked up.
“What is Vantage Lifestyle Consulting?””
Vanessa's face tightened.
“My business.””
“You told me you closed that business two years ago.””
“I reopened it.””
“With whose money?””
“Mine.””
He pointed to the statements.
“Then why is my daughter's money going into it?””
Vanessa snatched one page from the counter.
“You don't understand how businesses work.””
“I understand bank statements.””
She slammed the folder shut.
“I'm not discussing this anymore.””
Marcus took the folder back.
“We're discussing it until I know where every dollar went.””
Vanessa stepped closer.
“Maybe if you spent less time worshipping your dead wife, you'd notice what your living wife has done for you.””
Marcus stared at her.
The remark was so cruel that even Vanessa seemed surprised by her own words.
He didn't respond immediately.
Instead, he picked up the folder and walked toward the dining room.
“I'll have the accounts reviewed.””
Vanessa followed him.
“You can't just bring lawyers into our marriage!””
“You brought strangers into my daughter's life with false accusations. I think we're past worrying about appearances.””
His phone vibrated.
A message had arrived from Margaret.
It contained a screenshot of a bank transfer.
Marcus opened it.
The payment was labeled:
*NIA COLLINS EDUCATION TRUST — MONTHLY CONTRIBUTION.*
But beneath the transaction was another document.
A withdrawal authorization.
Marcus zoomed in.
The document carried his name.
His signature.
And a date from three years earlier.
He stared at it.
He had never signed that document.
“Vanessa.””
She stopped walking.
“Don't.””
He turned the phone toward her.
“Who forged my signature?””
Vanessa's lips parted.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Then she laughed nervously.
“That's ridiculous.””
“It's your handwriting on the account application.””
“I helped prepare the paperwork.””
“Did you sign my name?””
“I said I helped prepare it!””
Marcus looked closer at the document.
The signature was almost perfect.
Almost.
He remembered signing a different set of forms around the same time. His handwriting had changed slightly after an injury to his right hand.
The signature on the withdrawal authorization didn't reflect that.
He zoomed in again.
Then he noticed the witness name.
Daniel Reed.
The same Daniel who had received the video of Nia.
Marcus looked up slowly.
“Daniel signed as the witness?””
Vanessa said nothing.
Marcus felt a new kind of dread.
The man who had received the false accusation wasn't simply a friend.
He had helped authorize withdrawals from Nia's education fund.
His phone rang.
It was Daniel.
Marcus answered on speaker.
“Marcus, listen. Vanessa says you've misunderstood the paperwork.””
“Did you witness my signature on a withdrawal from my daughter's trust?””
Silence.
Then Daniel spoke.
“I don't think this is the right time to discuss that.””
“Did you witness it?””
“Marcus, I was trying to help Vanessa.””
“By signing a document saying I approved the withdrawal?””
Vanessa stepped toward the phone.
“Daniel, hang up.””
But Daniel continued.
“Look, the money was used for family expenses. Nobody stole anything.””
Marcus looked at Vanessa.
“How much?””
Daniel exhaled.
“About eighty thousand dollars.””
Marcus went completely still.
Margaret had been sending money for three years.
The transfers alone amounted to far more than eighty thousand.
He gripped the counter.
“Where's the rest?””
Daniel hesitated.
Then he said something that made Vanessa close her eyes.
“Ask her about the house she bought.””
Marcus looked at his wife.
“What house?””
May you like
Vanessa's face had turned white.
And for the first time, Marcus realized that the woman who had tried to throw his daughter out might have been preparing to leave him long before that afternoon.
