Chapter 5 - THE ACCOUNT NO ONE REMEMBERED
Joanna had always trusted numbers more than promises.
Numbers could be incomplete, manipulated, or misinterpreted, but with enough context, they usually revealed where the truth had been hidden.
People were more complicated.
They could look you in the eye, promise to love you, and still make decisions designed to benefit themselves at your expense.
Two weeks after leaving the townhouse, Joanna received a call from a bank investigator.
The investigator explained that a loan application connected to her identity had been flagged for review.
"We're not making any conclusions at this stage," he said. "We need to verify whether you authorized the application."
"I did not."
"Can you provide supporting documentation?"
"Yes. My attorney has copies of the disputed records."
The investigator gave Rebecca his contact information and ended the call.
Joanna immediately forwarded the details.
Later that afternoon, she sat with Charles in a small conference room at Rebecca's office.
They had spent the morning organizing records into separate categories: property documents, loan applications, bank statements, and communications.
Charles watched as Joanna examined a spreadsheet.
"What are you looking for?"
"A pattern."
She highlighted three transfers.
"These payments went through different accounts, but the timing is unusual. Each occurred shortly before Randy asked me to provide financial documents."
"Could they have another explanation?"
"Possibly. I need to see the original records before drawing conclusions."
She opened another file.
A consulting company had received money from an account associated with Randy's business activities. Some of that money later appeared in a property account connected to Eden's house.
The transfers did not prove that the funds were improperly obtained.
But they raised a question: why had Randy described the transactions as ordinary household expenses?
Joanna created a timeline and sent it to Rebecca.
The lawyer responded within an hour.
This is useful. Please do not investigate further by accessing any account you aren't authorized to use. We'll request the necessary records through the proper process.
Joanna closed the file.
She had spent years solving financial puzzles for other people.
Now she had to learn where her responsibility ended.
The following day, Randy's attorney proposed a settlement.
In exchange for Joanna agreeing not to pursue certain financial claims, Randy would sign an agreement acknowledging her ownership of the townhouse and provide her with a payment to cover temporary expenses.
There was one additional condition.
Joanna would agree not to share any recordings or messages with anyone outside the legal process.
Rebecca read the proposal carefully.
"Confidentiality provisions can be complicated," she explained. "We won't agree to anything that prevents you from reporting suspected crimes, cooperating with authorities, or complying with legal obligations. We also need to examine whether the proposed payment is fair and whether the agreement protects your interests."
Joanna stared at the figures.
The money was substantial.
For a moment, she imagined accepting it, recovering her home, and disappearing from Randy's life.
Then she remembered the missing signatures.
The threats.
The bruises.
She remembered Randy standing beside the bed, ordering her to cover the evidence of what he had done.
"No," she said.
Rebecca looked up.
"You don't want to negotiate?"
"I want a fair resolution. But I'm not signing something that lets him pretend none of this happened."
"That's your decision. We'll respond accordingly."
That evening, Joanna received a message from an unfamiliar number.
You don't know the whole story. Meet me tomorrow, and I'll explain.
There was no name.
She showed Rebecca.
The attorney advised her not to meet an unknown person alone and to preserve the message.
Joanna didn't respond.
An hour later, another message arrived.
It's Gregory. Eden's brother. Please. I think Randy has been lying to all of us.
Joanna read it twice.
Gregory had been involved in the property development venture that Randy hoped to join. His company had appeared in the financial records, but no one had established that he had participated in the suspected misconduct.
Rebecca agreed to arrange a meeting through the attorneys.
They met two days later in a conference room at Rebecca's office.
Gregory looked older than Joanna remembered.
"I don't know everything Randy has done," he began. "But I know the property project wasn't what he told you it was."
He explained that Randy had presented himself as having permission to negotiate the townhouse sale.
Gregory had assumed the authorization was genuine.
"When I asked for the signed documents, he said you were dealing with a family issue and didn't want to be involved."
Joanna's hands tightened.
"I never authorized a sale."
"I believe you."
Gregory opened a folder.
He had brought emails, preliminary agreements, and payment records concerning the proposed development.
Some of the documents appeared to support Joanna's account. Others required further examination.
"Why are you telling me this now?" she asked.
Gregory looked down.
"Because I was so focused on making the project work that I didn't ask enough questions. I should have verified what Randy told me."
He paused.
"And because my sister has been calling me, asking whether I knew about the loan applications."
"Did you?"
"No. I didn't know anything about those until recently."
Rebecca asked several careful questions, and Gregory agreed to provide the records through the appropriate channels.
After the meeting, Joanna sat quietly in the passenger seat of her father's car.
"Do you think he's telling the truth?" she asked.
Charles kept his eyes on the road.
"I think he's provided information that can be checked. That's what matters."
Joanna nodded.
She was beginning to understand that trust did not have to be all or nothing.
She could listen without blindly believing.
She could question without accusing.
She could protect herself without turning every conversation into a battle.
That night, Rebecca called with an update.
The bank had found discrepancies in the loan application records. It had referred the matter for additional review and requested original documents.
No final determination had been made.
However, the investigation had uncovered a previously undisclosed account associated with the property venture.
Joanna opened her laptop.
"Can we identify the source of the transfers?"
"Not yet," Rebecca replied. "But the bank is working on it."
Joanna looked at the spreadsheet on her screen.
A new account.
Another unexplained transfer.
Another question.
For the first time, she felt no urge to confront Randy.
She wanted the truth established properly.
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And whatever the investigation revealed, she knew one thing already.
She would never again confuse someone's confidence with proof that they were right.
