Chapter 4: The Account Nobody Knew About
Marcus read the message again.
The signature is only the beginning. Ask Vanessa who owns the account ending in 4408.
The courtroom had begun emptying for recess, but Marcus barely noticed. His eyes moved between the phone and his ex-wife, who stood near the side exit with her attorney.
Vanessa was staring directly at him.
When she realized he had noticed, she turned away and began speaking rapidly to Mr. Collins.
“Daniel,” Marcus whispered, “someone knows about an account ending in 4408. I've never seen that number before.””
Daniel took the phone, read the messages, and immediately handed it back.
“Don't respond. Save screenshots, preserve the original messages, and don't delete anything.””
“Who would send these?””
“I don't know. But whoever it is seems to know more than we're being told.””
Marcus looked toward the doorway where Peter Lawson had disappeared.
“Could it be Peter?””
“Possibly. Or someone trying to make us believe it's Peter. We need evidence before we draw conclusions.””
Daniel opened his briefcase and removed a small notebook.
“Let's start with what you know. You said Vanessa once handled your household finances. Did she have access to your business banking?””
“She had access to one joint account. Not the company accounts.””
“Could she have obtained access through an old authorization?””
Marcus thought about it.
“Maybe. Years ago, she helped me prepare documents when my father died. She knew our accountant, our bank manager, and where the company kept its old financial files.””
Daniel wrote something down.
“Did your father have any accounts that remained open after his death?””
“Not that I know of.””
“Trusts? Investment accounts? Property-holding companies?””
“My father owned two rental properties. They were transferred into the company after he died.””
“Were they transferred directly?””
Marcus frowned.
“I thought they were.””
Daniel stopped writing.
“You thought?””
“I signed a mountain of paperwork after the funeral. Vanessa helped organize it. She said the accountant had taken care of the complicated parts.””
Daniel leaned back.
“Marcus, I need you to understand something. We don't yet know whether this is a custody dispute complicated by a financial issue or a financial scheme that someone is using the custody dispute to conceal. Those are very different situations.””
Marcus rubbed the red heart on his cheek, then stopped when he remembered Ava had drawn it.
“She said something about an audit,” he murmured.
“The note Ava found mentioned completing a transfer before the audit.””
Daniel's expression sharpened.
“What audit?””
“I don't know.””
“Then that's where we begin.””
Across the courtroom, Vanessa pulled Mr. Collins into a private conversation near the benches.
Marcus couldn't hear everything, but one sentence reached him.
“You promised me he would never get near those records.””
Mr. Collins looked around before answering.
“Lower your voice. Nothing has been authenticated yet.””
“But Peter is here.””
“And he hasn't testified.””
“What if he has the original?””
“Vanessa, stop.””
She grabbed his sleeve.
“You don't understand what happens if that account is discovered.””
Mr. Collins removed her hand.
“I understand perfectly well that you need to stop talking.””
Marcus felt Daniel touch his elbow.
“Don't approach them.””
“She's admitting there's something to hide.””
“She may be admitting to many things. We need proof of which one matters.””
Before Marcus could respond, the clerk announced that the recess would continue for another fifteen minutes.
Daniel led him into the corridor outside the courtroom.
“Call your bank's fraud department,” he said.
“Ask whether any accounts, authorizations, or transfer requests exist under your name that you don't recognize. Don't accuse anyone. Just request the information through the proper channels.””
Marcus made the call while Daniel stood nearby.
After several identity checks, a bank representative placed him on hold.
A minute passed.
Then another.
Finally, the representative returned.
“Mr. Reed, I can confirm that there is an account associated with your identifying information that requires additional verification. However, I cannot disclose the full account details until we complete a security review.””
Marcus's pulse quickened.
“Can you tell me when it was opened?””
“I can confirm that the account was opened approximately fourteen months ago.””
Fourteen months.
Vanessa had filed for divorce eleven months earlier.
“Who opened it?””
“I'm unable to confirm that over this call.””
“Was it opened in person?””
“According to our preliminary records, the application was submitted electronically.””
“Did I sign the application?””
“Sir, we need to complete the verification process before discussing the signature.””
Marcus closed his eyes.
“Please flag the account for a suspected identity issue and tell me how to submit a formal dispute.””
The representative explained the process and gave him a reference number.
When Marcus ended the call, Daniel was watching him carefully.
“Fourteen months ago,” Marcus said.
“An account was opened under my identifying information.””
Daniel's jaw tightened.
“Document the call. Write down the time, the representative's name if you have it, and the reference number. We'll request the records through the appropriate process.””
“Could money have been stolen from my company?””
“We don't know yet.””
Marcus looked through the corridor window at the parking lot below.
For fourteen months, he had believed the worst thing Vanessa had done was betray their marriage.
He was beginning to wonder whether the marriage itself had been a distraction from something much larger.
His phone vibrated again.
This time, the message contained a photograph.
It showed a page from an old financial ledger. Several transactions were highlighted in yellow, and a handwritten note appeared in the margin.
*Account 4408 — temporary holding account. Transfer authorization required before independent audit.*
Below it was a date.
The same week Peter Lawson had resigned.
Marcus enlarged the image.
At the bottom of the page was a signature.
His signature.
Or something made to look like it.
Daniel examined the photograph over his shoulder.
“That's not enough to establish authenticity,” he said.
“But it gives us a specific document to request.””
“Who sent it?””
Before Daniel could answer, another message appeared.
Ask Peter what happened to the original ledger. Don't trust the copy Vanessa submits.
Marcus typed a reply before Daniel could stop him.
Who are you?
Three dots appeared.
Then vanished.
Then appeared again.
The answer arrived.
Someone who should have spoken sooner.
Marcus stared at the screen.
“That's helpful,” he muttered.
Daniel didn't smile.
“Sometimes people wait until they think the danger is worse for them than the silence.””
A door opened behind them.
Peter Lawson stepped into the corridor, holding the brown envelope against his chest.
He looked exhausted. His tie was loose, and dark circles shadowed his eyes.
“Marcus,” he said.
Marcus approached him cautiously.
“Peter. Why are you here?””
Peter glanced at Daniel.
“Because I should have told you the truth before I resigned.””
“What truth?””
Peter looked toward the courtroom doors.
“Not here. Not where Vanessa can hear us.””
Daniel stepped between them.
“If you have relevant information, it needs to be handled properly. My client cannot discuss confidential company records with you without understanding what you're offering.””
Peter nodded.
“I understand. I brought copies of the records, but I also brought something else.””
He opened the envelope just enough to reveal a thick ledger.
Marcus recognized the company's old accounting format immediately.
Peter's hands trembled.
“The original records show where the money went,” he said.
“But there's one page that proves the account wasn't the real secret.””
Daniel's eyes narrowed.
“What was the real secret?””
Peter looked straight at Marcus.
“Who had the authority to move the money.””
Then he pulled a second envelope from inside his jacket.
It bore Marcus's name.
May you like
And across the front, in Vanessa's handwriting, were six words that made Marcus's blood run cold.
*If he finds this, we're finished.*
