Chapter 10 - ROBERT’S FIRST DEPOSITION
Robert testified under oath.
Naomi asked:
“Did Bennett authorize the seven-hundred-eighty-thousand-dollar credit facility?”
“I believed he did.”
“Did you speak with him?”
“No.”
“Email?”
“No.”
“Text?”
“No.”
“Then why believe it?”
“Helen said he agreed.”
My mother.
“Did you see a signed consent?”
“Yes.”
“Did you know the signature image had been copied from a prior document?”
“No.”
“Who prepared the consent?”
“Silas.”
There.
First direct attribution.
Silas’s attorney objected.
Robert continued.
“He said Bennett didn’t want family drama and preferred not to be involved.”
That sounded like me.
Which was why the lie worked.
“Did you know Clara’s original trust exceeded one million dollars?”
“Yes.”
“Why tell Bennett she received less?”
Robert looked irritated.
“Because practically she did.”
“What does practically mean?”
“She had expenses.”
“So did Bennett.”
“He was successful.”
“Therefore?”
“He didn’t need help.”
Naomi paused.
“This trust was not drafted according to need, was it?”
Robert did not answer.
“No.”
“The assets were approximately equal?”
“Yes.”
“Then why use Bennett’s future residence interest to rescue Clara again?”
My father’s jaw tightened.
“Because family doesn’t let one branch collapse while another sits on wealth.”
There.
The philosophy.
May you like
Not yet the crime.
But close.
