Chapter 8 - THE FIRST FALSE REQUEST
The audit identified seventeen questionable distribution requests.
Some real.
One was not.
$38,500 for “specialized behavioral therapy and family stabilization services.”
No such therapy occurred.
Money went to a company called Cedar Path Family Consulting.
Owner:
Nathan Briggs.
Daniel’s childhood friend.
Cedar Path had no licensed clinicians.
The money moved again.
$25,000 into Daniel’s equipment company.
$8,000 to Margaret.
Rest used for taxes and fees.
I felt physically sick.
“He stole from them.”
Samuel corrected gently.
“The trust is evaluating unauthorized diversion. Criminal classification belongs to investigators.”
Right.
Words mattered.
The girls’ trust remained above $6 million because investment gains exceeded withdrawals.
Financially, they had not been ruined.
Morally, the boundary had been crossed.
My father built something for them.
Daniel treated it like emergency household capital.
An email surfaced between Daniel and Nathan Briggs.
Daniel:
Once I’m primary, requests get easier.
Nathan:
You sure?
Daniel:
Hannah won’t be signing anything much longer.
May you like
Date:
Seven weeks before the hospital.
