Chapter 10 - The Hearing

Daniel filed for an emergency order blocking any transfer while the deed was investigated. The hearing was Tuesday morning. I wore the navy dress from Robert's memorial service because it made me feel steady.

Brooke arrived with a lawyer, wearing polite concern. Evan sat two rows behind her and avoided my eyes until the judge entered.

Brooke's lawyer argued that the deed reflected a voluntary family transfer. He said the disagreement was a private dispute over an older woman's wishes. Daniel answered with the trust, the suspicious notary stamp, the lender's application, and the hospital record showing I had been under sedation at the exact time the deed supposedly was signed.

The judge looked over her glasses. "Ms. Mercer, are you claiming you personally signed this document at the bank on Monday afternoon?"

"No," I said. "I was having eye surgery. I can provide the discharge papers."

Brooke's lawyer objected that medical records did not prove I hadn't signed something earlier. Daniel pointed to the deed's notarization block and the bank's visitor log. The location and time were part of the official filing. The document claimed a meeting that had never happened.

The judge granted a temporary order preventing any sale, refinancing, or change in title while the investigation continued. She warned both sides not to contact the other about the property except through counsel.

I should have felt victorious. Instead, I was exhausted. My house was still mine, but the people who had tried to take it knew where I slept.

Outside, Brooke whispered, "You think this makes you safe? You have no idea what Evan has already signed." Her lawyer pulled her away, but the sentence stayed with me.

I turned to Evan. "What else did you sign?"

He opened his mouth, then looked at Brooke disappearing down the hall.

"I need to tell you something," he said. "But not here."

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I didn't follow him. I went back to Daniel's office and waited until Detective Kim arrived. When I repeated Brooke's words, the detective's expression sharpened.

"We found another application this morning," she said. "It isn't against your house. It's against an account you and your husband closed years ago."