Chapter 6 - THE GIRLS’ PAPER
Family court kept the girls with me temporarily and granted Andrew supervised contact until the gala incident and tracking attempt were reviewed.
The judge did not call Andrew dangerous.
She called the circumstances unstable.
Andrew’s attorney objected to supervision.
Rachel played the complete ballroom video privately.
The objection weakened.
During the girls’ first forensic interview, Sophia described Patricia’s words accurately.
Chloe remembered the sauce, laughter, and her father lifting a glass.
“Did Dad tell Grandma to pour food?” the interviewer asked.
“No.”
“Did he know she would?”
Chloe looked uncertain.
“Dad said Grandma had a surprise.”
That did not prove planning.
The surprise could have meant the gala announcement.
Sophia remembered more.
Before entering the ballroom, Andrew told her:
“If Grandma makes Mommy angry, take Chloe to Aunt Rose.”
He anticipated conflict.
He did not intervene when it arrived.
Andrew explained that Patricia and I often argued, and he wanted Sophia prepared.
Family court did not resolve intent from one sentence.
It noted the pattern.
Rachel obtained permission to inspect the forged release.
The digital file contained metadata from Vance Hospitality’s legal department.
Author:
PATRICIA.VANCE.
Last modified by:
ANDREW.VANCE.
Andrew claimed he opened the file after Patricia asked whether the wording looked correct.
“What did you think the document was?” Rachel asked during deposition.
“A draft release.”
“Releasing what?”
“A family obligation.”
“Did Lauren sign it?”
“I believed she would.”
“Why was it recorded before she agreed?”
Andrew requested a break.
His attorney whispered with him for fifteen minutes.
When they returned, Andrew refused to answer on grounds that the response might expose him to criminal liability.
That was the first time my husband acknowledged the forgery could reach him personally.
The missing notary, Evelyn Cross, was found at an airport in Montreal.
She had flown using a ticket purchased by a Vance Foundation account.
Canadian authorities interviewed her.
She said Patricia paid her to take a vacation after notarizing documents at the gala.
“Did you witness Lauren’s signature?”
“No.”
“Why notarize it?”
“Mrs. Vance said Lauren signed earlier.”
A notary cannot certify a signature based on an employer’s assurance.
Evelyn knew that.
She admitted using an old scan of my identification.
She also said Andrew brought the document to her.
Andrew denied it.
Airport and hotel video would determine more.
The criminal investigation expanded to forgery and fraudulent recording.
At home, Sophia asked whether Andrew would go to jail.
“I don’t know.”
“Do you want him to?”
“I want the truth checked.”
“Are you mad?”
“Yes.”
“Can you be mad and not know?”
“Yes.”
That answer seemed to help her.
The next day Rachel received a message from Vance Hospitality’s chief financial officer, Daniel Mercer.
He asked for a private meeting.
He brought no company laptop.
Only a handwritten cash-flow schedule.
“Tomorrow’s acquisition cannot close if the sealed note remains valid,” he said.
“What acquisition?”
“Bellmont Dining Group.”
“That’s what the gala celebrated.”
“The gala celebrated it before final funding.”
“Why?”
“Patricia wanted the market to believe completion was inevitable.”
Daniel pointed to a nine o’clock deadline on the schedule.
“If the original agreement matures before the wire clears, control changes.”
“To whom?”
He folded the paper.
“I need protection before I answer.”
A car stopped outside the café.
Daniel saw it through the window.
His face drained.
“That is Patricia’s driver.”
He left through the kitchen.
The handwritten schedule remained beneath his coffee cup.
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At the bottom was one note:
DAUGHTERS’ TRUST TAKES 51% AT DEFAULT.
