Chapter 19 - Last Friday
Lauren went pale.
Jared looked at her. “What did you sign?”
“Nothing important.”
Oscar’s expression hardened. “We are past that phrase.”
Lauren thought for a moment.
Then she remembered.
Martin had emailed her documents five days earlier, claiming they were routine amendments needed to delay the balloon payment. She had signed electronically without reading every page.
Jared closed his eyes.
“Lauren.”
“I know.”
“No, I don’t think you do.”
Investigators obtained the documents from Martin’s account.
The packet included a consent to transfer Lauren’s remaining inheritance into a new escrow account.
It also included a clause authorizing Blue Acre Holdings to act as temporary manager.
The signature had already been used.
The attempted $247,000 transfer that morning had not been random.
It was the first half of the sweep.
The second target was worse.
A business account associated with Jared’s company held reserve funds for payroll taxes.
Lauren did not have authority over the company.
But one document in the packet claimed she did.
Jared stared at the forged corporate resolution.
“If this hits payroll, people get hurt who have nothing to do with us.”
Oscar asked the investigators how quickly the accounts could be protected.
They coordinated emergency fraud holds with the banks.
At 4:41 p.m., seventeen minutes before the scheduled sweep, the transfer channels were blocked.
At 4:53, Chase attempted the transaction.
It failed.
At 5:02, border authorities detained a man traveling under a false name at Chicago O’Hare before he could board a flight to Montreal.
Chase Mercer had not even made it to Canada.
The black duffel was found in his luggage compartment, along with $61,000 and a flash drive containing North Harbor client records.
By evening, the scheme had collapsed.
But the family had not repaired itself.
Back at Oscar’s apartment, Jared stood near the same table where the first question had been asked.
Lauren faced him.
“I’ll do whatever it takes,” she said.
Jared’s eyes were red from exhaustion.
“I don’t know if that’s enough.”
She looked at Oscar. “I’m sorry.”
Oscar studied her for a long time.
“I believe you are sorry now.”
The words hit harder than yelling.
Lauren nodded.
Then Jared asked the question Oscar had been avoiding.
“Dad, why didn’t you ever tell me how bad things were here?”
May you like
Oscar looked at the cold kitchen.
Because the answer was not simple.
