Chapter 11 - The Camera Over the Bookshelf
The footage was grainy and silent.
It did not need sound.
On the screen, the date read July 22, 2019.
Nine days after my father’s funeral.
Vanessa entered Dad’s office at 11:43 p.m.
She locked the door.
Then she carried a stack of papers to the fireplace.
One by one, she fed them into the flames.
At 12:07 a.m., she opened the bottom drawer of Dad’s desk and removed a folder.
Blue.
My chest tightened.
“That’s it,” Kyle said. “Or another one like it.”
Vanessa sat at the desk and read.
Then she pulled out her phone and made a call.
At 12:18, another person entered.
A man in a gray suit.
Benjamin leaned closer.
“I know him.”
“Who?”
“Martin Sloane. The temporary co-trustee.”
The man who had helped Vanessa gain account access.
On the video, Vanessa handed him several pages.
He read them.
They argued.
No sound.
But the body language was obvious.
He pointed at the papers.
She pointed at the fireplace.
He shook his head.
Then Vanessa did something that made Maya gasp.
She tore one page in half.
Then again.
Then dropped it into the fire.
Martin Sloane stood there and watched.
The video continued.
At 12:31, he opened Dad’s laptop.
At 12:44, they both left.
Benjamin paused the screen.
“This changes tomorrow.”
“Will a judge believe it?” I asked.
“A judge does not need to guess whether Vanessa knew the documents existed. We can show her handling them days after your father died.”
“What about Sloane?”
“We subpoena him.”
Kyle shifted in his chair.
“I haven’t told you the worst part.”
I looked at him.
He swallowed.
“That camera wasn’t installed after Thomas died.”
“What?”
“Mom had it installed six months before.”
“Why?”
“She thought he was hiding money from her.”
My stomach turned.
“So she was recording him.”
“Yeah.”
“Did Dad know?”
“No.”
Kyle rubbed his face.
“There are older clips on the card.”
Maya scrolled backward.
April 3, 2019.
My father appeared on screen.
Alive.
He sat at his desk with Benjamin.
I had not seen moving video of him in years.
I forgot to breathe.
Dad looked older than I remembered, but it was him.
He laughed at something Benjamin said.
Then he signed several documents.
The trust amendment.
My hand flew to my mouth.
There it was.
Proof.
On video.
Dad signing the papers Vanessa later claimed were invalid.
Then another person entered.
Vanessa.
She sat down.
Benjamin pointed to a page.
Vanessa read.
She argued.
Dad stood.
She pointed at me in a framed photo on the shelf.
Dad shook his head.
Finally, Vanessa grabbed the pen.
She signed.
The exact amendment.
Maya whispered, “That’s authentication.”
Benjamin nodded.
“It’s much more than that.”
The footage kept going.
Dad said something.
No audio.
Vanessa’s face changed.
She stood so fast the chair tipped.
Then she slapped the document with her palm and stormed out.
I looked at Kyle.
“Do you know what they were arguing about?”
He nodded slowly.
“I heard Mom talk about it later.”
“What did Dad say?”
May you like
Kyle looked at me.
“He told her that if she ever forced you out, she would lose the house.”
