Chương 4
“She went on her own.”
Charlotte turned back to Brandon.
“Your mother forged my signature.”
Gertrude lifted her chin.
“I signed with your authorization.”
“I never authorized you.”
“You authorized Brandon to manage household finances.”
“No, I did not.”
“You let him handle accounts.”
“That is not permission to sign my name.”
“You’re making a technical distinction.”
“It is literally a legal distinction.”
Gertrude’s mouth tightened.
“Don’t become theatrical.”
Hailey had followed them into the kitchen and now stood beside the refrigerator with her arms crossed.
“Mom, she isn’t being theatrical.”
Gertrude gave her a warning look.
Hailey looked away but did not leave.
Charlotte pulled the folder open again.
“Who witnessed these?”
Brandon said nothing.
She scanned the signature lines.
One bore a notary stamp.
That stopped her.
Charlotte held the page closer.
The notary name was unfamiliar.
The commission information looked real enough, though she had no idea how to judge it.
“This was notarized.”
Gertrude answered too quickly.
“Yes.”
Charlotte looked up.
“Was I there?”
“No.”
“So somebody notarized a signature supposedly made by me when I wasn’t present.”
“It was handled remotely.”
Charlotte turned to Brandon.
“Was it?”
His eyes stayed on the floor.
Gertrude snapped, “For God’s sake, stop interrogating him like a criminal.”
Charlotte’s voice remained low.
“I’m trying to determine how many people committed fraud in my kitchen.”
“That word again.”
“Yes, Gertrude, that word again.”
The doorbell rang.
Every adult in the kitchen froze.
Skylar shouted from the hallway, “Pancakes.”
The normality of it was almost unbearable.
Charlotte opened the door.
A young delivery driver stood outside holding a paper bag and two drink carriers.
He smiled mechanically.
“Charlotte?”
“Yes.”
He handed everything over.
“Have a good night.”
“You too.”
She closed the door and carried the food into the kitchen.
Skylar appeared immediately.
Charlotte set the containers on the counter.
“Plate or box?”
“Box.”
“Fork?”
“They gave me one.”
Skylar took the bag, then hesitated.
“Can I eat in my room?”
Charlotte glanced at Gertrude.
“Yes.”
Gertrude said nothing.
Skylar disappeared again.
Brandon walked to the sink and filled a glass with water.
His hand shook badly enough that the glass tapped against the faucet.
Charlotte noticed.
So did Hailey.
Gertrude did not seem to.
Charlotte folded the documents back into the folder.
“I’m calling an attorney.”
Brandon turned.
“Tonight?”
“Tomorrow morning.”
“You don’t even know what happened yet.”
“I know my name is on documents I didn’t sign.”
“If you call a lawyer, this gets bigger.”
Charlotte stared at him.
“It is already bigger.”
“You could trigger the lender.”
“What does that mean?”
Brandon looked at his mother.
Gertrude looked away.
Charlotte stepped closer.
“What does that mean?”
“The loan is in default.”
The words came from Hailey.
Everyone turned toward her.
Brandon’s expression hardened.
“How do you know that?”
Hailey’s face lost color.
“Evan told me.”
Charlotte watched the siblings look at each other.
There was something underneath the anger between them.
Something older than tonight.
“When?” Charlotte asked.
Hailey rubbed her thumb across one fingernail.
“A week ago.”
“And you didn’t tell me.”
“I didn’t know about the signature.”
“But you knew about the loan.”
“Yes.”
“How bad is the default?”
Hailey glanced at Brandon.
He said, “Don’t.”
That was enough.
Charlotte turned back to her.
“How bad?”
Hailey took a breath.
“They sent a demand.”
“What kind of demand?”
“For the balance.”
Charlotte waited.
Hailey continued reluctantly.
“And they said they’d enforce the security agreement if it wasn’t paid.”
The refrigerator hummed behind her.
Somewhere outside, a car accelerated down the street.
Charlotte looked at Brandon.
“How much do they say you owe?”
“More than the original amount.”
“How much?”
He put the untouched glass of water on the counter.
“Ninety-two thousand.”
Charlotte felt her stomach drop.
“Why is it ninety-two?”
“Fees.”
“In two months?”
“Three.”
“Three months of fees added seventeen thousand dollars?”
“It’s not a bank.”
“That much I gathered.”
Gertrude stepped forward.
“We have a solution.”
Charlotte looked at her.
Gertrude gestured toward the papers.
“That is what tonight was about.”
“The seafood dinner was a debt strategy?”
Hailey covered her mouth, and Charlotte could not tell whether she was suppressing a laugh or nausea.
Gertrude ignored the remark.
“My condominium is nearly paid off.”
Brandon said, “Mom.”
“I am explaining.”
She continued.
“I can refinance and cover enough to stop the enforcement.”
Charlotte studied her.
“Then why do you need papers involving my house?”
Gertrude’s confidence faltered again.
Charlotte saw it this time.
The documents were not part of the solution.
They were part of the problem.
She pulled the first page free and read more carefully.
The financial language remained dense, but one sentence stood out now that she knew what she was looking for.
Additional collateral.
Her eyes moved to the date.
Six weeks earlier.
She flipped to another page.
The original loan appeared to have been amended.
“What did you do six weeks ago?”
Nobody answered.
Charlotte looked at Brandon.
“What changed six weeks ago?”
His face seemed to age in front of her.
“The company missed another payment.”
“So?”
“They asked for more collateral.”
“And you gave them our house.”
“An interest in it.”
“You keep saying that like it helps.”
“I was trying to keep them from calling the whole loan.”
“You already told me they called it.”
“That happened afterward.”
Charlotte looked at Gertrude.
“And you signed my name for the amendment.”
Gertrude’s lips pressed together.
“Yes.”
Hailey whispered something that sounded like “Jesus.”
Charlotte placed the page back into the folder.
Her anger had moved beyond heat.
Everything felt precise now.
She noticed the wine stain on Brandon’s cuff.
She noticed Gertrude had left her reading glasses beside the sushi tray.
She noticed a pancake smell drifting faintly down the hallway.
“You all need to leave.”
Brandon stared at her.
“This is my house too.”
“Yes.”
“So you can’t throw me out.”
“I am asking you to leave tonight.”
May you like
“Where am I supposed to go?”
Charlotte looked toward his mother.
