Chapter 6 - The Ledger
Dana didn't retreat. She lifted the camera and snapped Grant's face at close range.
“Don't come any closer,” she said. “My editor has my location.”
“She's a liar,” Grant told me. “She's been trying to blackmail my family.”
“Then why are you sweating?” I asked.
The first police cruiser pulled up beside the curb. Relief rushed through me so hard my knees nearly gave out.
Officer Chen approached while his partner spoke to Rosa. I described the slap, the threats, the forged documents, and the attempt to force me to sign. I showed him my bruised cheek and the pages I'd saved on my phone.
Grant gave his own version: a marital disagreement, accidental contact, a table I had destroyed for attention.
Officer Chen didn't argue. He separated us, photographed my injury with permission, and asked whether I wanted medical attention and help finding a safe place to stay.
“Yes,” I said, surprising myself with how badly I needed to hear the word.
Dana stood off to one side. When the officers finished, she handed me a printed sheet. “This is only one page,” she said. “The rest is with my attorney.”
Rows of transactions ran down it: payments to Bayline 47, payments from Bayline 47, and a recurring monthly transfer marked HARBORLIGHT CONSULTING.
“That's not one of our accounts,” I said.
Dana pointed to the authorization field. “Look at who opened it.”
There was a name beneath the company header: Miles Whitmore.
Miles stood in the doorway, watching us. He looked sick.
“Miles,” I called. “Tell me this is a mistake.”
He lowered his eyes. Grant shouted his name, but Miles kept walking down the steps.
“I didn't know they were using your signature,” he told me. “I swear.”
“Using it for what?”
He looked at the officers, then at his brother.
Officer Chen gave me a case number and explained what would happen next in plain language. He didn't promise arrests or tell me the evidence was enough.
“To cover the money that vanished after the marina deal fell apart.”
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Grant made a choking sound. And Miles added the words that changed everything:
“Claire, they're going to blame you for it.”
