Chapter 7 - The SignatureWe left the house through the back door.
Daniel carried only his coat.
I carried the metal box.
Tyler followed us.
For the first time in years, we were moving in the same direction.
Not as a family.
As people running from the same fire.
Claire met us at her office.
She had already printed the filing.
She placed it on the table.
“There.”
I looked at the page.
My name.
My address.
My supposed signature.
My supposed authorization.
I studied it.
Then I noticed something.
The signature wasn't mine.
Not this time.
It was a perfect copy.
Almost too perfect.
“I know this is fake,” I said.
Claire nodded.
“So do I.”
“Then why would they file something this obvious?”
“Because whoever did it believes the filing itself is enough to create pressure.”
She pointed to the bottom.
“Look at the notary.”
I did.
The notary stamp belonged to a law office in the next county.
“What does that mean?”
“I called them.”
“And?”
“The notary exists.”
My stomach dropped.
“Then—”
“But she claims she never met you.”
I stared at Claire.
“Can she prove it?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“She was out of state that day.”
I sat back.
“So they forged her stamp too.”
“Looks like it.”
Claire opened another folder.
“There's more.”
She slid over bank records.
“The $280,000 loan wasn't deposited into your parents' account.”
“Where did it go?”
“Four separate accounts.”
“Whose?”
“Tyler's. Your father's. Your mother's. And one LLC.”
“What LLC?”
“Bennett Family Holdings.”
I frowned.
“I've never heard of it.”
Claire looked at me.
“That's the point.”
She handed me a company registration.
The LLC had been created eight months earlier.
The registered agent was my father.
But there was another document.
An ownership schedule.
My name appeared there too.
I felt sick.
“Why would they put me on an LLC?”
“To give the appearance that you consented.”
I looked at Tyler.
“Did you know about this?”
He shook his head.
“No.”
“You signed for it.”
“I didn't know what it was.”
“You keep saying that.”
“I was stupid.”
“You were helping them.”
“I know.”
His voice cracked.
Claire interrupted.
“I'm going to need the entire truth now.”
Tyler nodded.
He started talking.
Slowly at first.
Then faster.
He told us about the debts.
The gambling.
The private lenders.
The pressure.
The threats.
Then he admitted something worse.
“Dad told me the car would be the easiest asset to sell.”
I stared at him.
“How much was it worth?”
“About fifty-five thousand.”
“Then why did you smash it?”
His face twisted.
“Because I couldn't transfer it.”
I frowned.
“What do you mean?”
He looked at Claire.
“The title was clean.”
“Of course it was.”
“So Dad wanted me to pressure you into signing.”
“And when I refused?”
“You were supposed to be scared.”
My jaw tightened.
“You destroyed the car because you wanted me scared?”
Tyler nodded.
“Dad said you'd give up once you realized how much trouble you could be in.”
I looked at Claire.
“Did they know the insurance was in my name?”
“Yes.”
“Then why?”
“Because the damage was part of the plan.”
“What plan?”
Tyler took a breath.
“They wanted to stage a dispute.”
My stomach turned.
“Why?”
“To make it look like I had a legitimate claim against the vehicle.”
Claire's eyes narrowed.
“That doesn't make sense.”
Tyler shook his head.
“It wasn't about the car.”
“What was it about?”
He looked directly at me.
“The insurance payout.”
I stared at him.
“They expected the car to be declared a total loss.”
“And then?”
“Dad planned to claim partial ownership.”
I almost laughed.
“You don't get part of an insurance payout because you're related to someone.”
“I know.”
“Then why?”
Tyler's voice dropped.
“Because he had another document.”
Claire leaned forward.
“What document?”
Tyler swallowed.
“A power of attorney.”
The room went silent.
I felt ice move through my veins.
“Whose?”
“Yours.”
“But I never signed one.”
“I know.”
Claire asked, “Where is it?”
Tyler shook his head.
“I don't know.”
“Your father has it?”
“Yes.”
“When did he get it?”
Tyler looked at me.
“Three months ago.”
Everything clicked.
The papers Mom had brought.
The refinancing documents.
The hurried signatures.
The papers I had signed without reading.
I stood.
“I need to see that document.”
Claire grabbed my wrist.
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because if your father knows we're looking for it, he'll destroy it.”
I stared at her.
“Then what do we do?”
Claire's eyes hardened.
“We make him think we still don't know.”
That night, I called my father.
For the first time, I let my voice tremble.
“Dad?”
“Yes?”
“I think I made a mistake.”
Silence.
“What kind of mistake?”
“I can't deal with the bank.”
His voice softened instantly.
“You don't have to.”
“I don't know what to do.”
“I told you I'd handle it.”
“I know.”
A pause.
Then I said the sentence Claire had written for me.
“I'll sign whatever you need.”
There was silence on the other end.
Then Dad exhaled.
“That's my girl.”
I closed my eyes.
He believed me.
Good.
Because twenty minutes later, he sent me an address.
Not his house.
Not his office.
A storage facility across town.
The message contained one line.
Bring your ID. We need the original documents.
Claire read it.
May you like
Then looked at me.
“He just told us where the evidence is.”
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