Chapter 8 - Victoria Wasn't the Only Woman He Was Paying
The forged deed went into an evidence bag.
Detective Ortiz arrived forty minutes later.
Camille repeated everything.
Then came the question none of us could answer.
Who had inserted the document into her folder?
Camille had stored the folder inside a locked filing cabinet at her apartment.
Only two people besides Camille had regular access.
Her mother.
And her boyfriend, Evan.
“Does Evan know about Julian?”
“Yes.”
“Does he know you were coming here?”
“Yes.”
Ortiz asked for his full name.
Camille hesitated.
Then said, “Evan Vance.”
I stared.
“Vance?”
Her face tightened.
“Julian's cousin.”
Of course.
Julian's family was everywhere.
Camille explained that Evan was the son of Julian's late uncle. He had mostly distanced himself from Victoria.
They had been dating six months.
“Why didn't you tell us?”
“Because I didn't think it mattered.”
It mattered.
Detective Ortiz asked whether Evan could have placed the deed in her folder.
Camille looked sick.
“I don't know.”
An hour later, Evan came voluntarily.
He denied touching the folder.
Then he said something unexpected.
“Ask Julian who Lauren Pierce is.”
Camille stared at him.
I did too.
“Who?”
Evan looked uncomfortable.
“I saw Julian with her.”
My stomach dropped for a completely different reason.
Of course.
An affair.
Why not add that?
“When?”
“Several times.”
“Where?”
“A condo downtown.”
I looked away.
Julian and I had been distant for a long time.
But hearing it still hurt.
Not because I wanted him back.
Because even after everything, there were apparently fresh rooms inside the betrayal.
Eleanor asked, “What is Miss Pierce's connection to the financial transfers?”
Evan blinked.
“I don't know.”
Rachel did.
By that evening, she had identified six payments from Julian-controlled accounts to L.P. Strategy Group.
Total:
$117,500.
The company belonged to Lauren Pierce.
“Consultant?” I asked.
“No evidence of meaningful services.”
“Then mistress.”
Rachel refused to speculate.
I did it for her.
Lauren Pierce was thirty-one.
A commercial real estate broker.
Blonde.
Beautiful.
Divorced.
She lived in a condo Julian could never afford while claiming to be nearly bankrupt.
I went home that evening feeling stupid all over again.
That emotion lasted until 8:30 the next morning.
Lauren Pierce walked into Eleanor's office.
She was not what I expected.
No dramatic heels.
No designer dress.
No smug expression.
She wore black trousers and a navy sweater and looked terrified.
“I need to speak to Nora.”
I folded my arms.
“You're speaking.”
Lauren looked at Eleanor.
“I'd like my lawyer present by phone.”
Five minutes later, we began.
Lauren was not Julian's mistress.
She was his private lender.
The condo Evan saw him entering?
Her office was inside the same building.
The $117,500?
Loan repayments.
Mostly interest.
“What loan?” I asked.
Lauren opened a file.
Julian had borrowed $400,000 from a private investment group she represented.
He guaranteed it personally.
The loan matured three months ago.
He had not repaid principal.
“What collateral did he offer?”
Lauren looked directly at me.
“The lake house.”
Everything stopped.
“He doesn't own it.”
“We know that now.”
“You didn't check?”
“We did.”
She pushed forward a photocopy.
A title commitment.
My name appeared.
So did Julian's.
“How?”
“That is what I came to explain.”
The document stated Julian held an equitable marital interest.
Attached was an affidavit.
Supposedly signed by me.
I picked it up.
The signature looked like mine.
Almost.
But I knew immediately.
“I didn't sign this.”
Lauren nodded.
“We suspect that.”
“Who notarized it?”
A woman named Patricia Cole.
I didn't recognize her.
Eleanor did.
“She works for Victoria's real estate attorney.”
The room became silent.
Lauren continued.
When the loan defaulted, her company prepared enforcement proceedings.
Julian begged for time.
Then, after my fall, he contacted Lauren saying title documents were being “corrected.”
Three days later, he promised to deliver a deed granting him formal ownership.
My skin crawled.
“He was doing all this while I was in the hospital.”
“Yes.”
“Did you know I was injured?”
Lauren looked ashamed.
“He told me you'd fallen.”
“And?”
“He said it wasn't serious.”
I laughed bitterly.
“Two cracked ribs. Broken wrist.”
“I know now.”
“Why come forward?”
Lauren folded her hands.
“Because last week, Victoria offered me eighty thousand dollars to backdate a document.”
Even Eleanor looked surprised.
“What document?”
“A letter stating our firm had reviewed and relied upon Nora's consent before issuing the loan.”
“Did you agree?”
“No.”
“What did you do?”
“Recorded the conversation.”
Another recording.
Victoria had apparently spent years assuming everyone could be purchased.
Lauren played it.
Victoria's voice was unmistakable.
“I am offering you a solution.”
Lauren said, “You're asking me to falsify my file.”
“I am asking you to make your file accurate.”
“It wasn't accurate on that date.”
“It can be now.”
“You realize what you're saying?”
“I realize everyone has a price.”
Lauren stopped the audio.
“I went to my attorney the next morning.”
Detective Ortiz took another statement.
Then Rachel asked an important question.
“Who prepared the original title affidavit?”
Lauren produced an email.
Sender:
Julian Vance.
Attachment prepared by:
Vance Hospitality legal admin.
There was no legal admin.
But the document metadata showed a username.
VictoriaV.
Eleanor leaned back.
“We are no longer looking at a single attempt to steal a house.”
“What are we looking at?”
“A coordinated fraud.”
The forged deed found in Camille's folder suddenly made sense.
Someone wanted that document discovered.
Maybe not to hurt me.
Maybe to protect themselves.
Evan denied it.
Camille denied it.
Lauren had never seen it.
Then my phone rang.
Detective Ortiz.
He asked me to come to the station.
“Why?”
“We executed a warrant on an electronic device.”
“Whose?”
“Julian's old tablet.”
My heart pounded.
“What did you find?”
“A deleted message chain between Julian and his mother.”
“How far back?”
“Four months.”
I held my breath.
Ortiz continued.
“One message was sent three hours before your fall.”
“What does it say?”
He paused.
Then read it.
Mom: She's home early. I found the desk key.
Julian: Don't push her too hard.
May you like
Victoria: Then tell me how I'm supposed to get her to sign.
Julian: If she won't sign, scare her until she does.
