Chapter 2 - THERE WAS NO TOKYO ASSIGNMENT
I let Teresa and Walter into the house.
Not permanently.
Not as caretaking dependents.
But Walter looked exhausted, and whatever David had done, his parents were standing on a Manhattan sidewalk with medication bags and nowhere else prepared.
I gave them the guest suite.
Then I made coffee.
Teresa watched me with narrowed eyes.
“What is going on?”
I placed my phone on the table.
The $15,000 diamond purchase.
The declined Plaza charge.
The Cartier attempt.
Walter stared.
Teresa shook her head.
“That proves nothing.”
“Your son was supposed to be on a plane.”
“Maybe the card is delayed.”
“The Plaza charge happened after the flight departed.”
Her expression changed.
Then I asked the question nobody expected.
“What company sent him to Tokyo?”
Teresa frowned.
“His firm.”
“Which firm?”
“Halberd International.”
I opened my laptop.
David was Senior Vice President of International Strategy at Halberd.
At least that was what his business card said.
Rachel had already contacted the company’s legal department only to confirm employment and assignment information relevant to the divorce.
Their response arrived at 2:18 p.m.
DAVID HAYES IS NOT CURRENTLY ASSIGNED TO TOKYO.
My hands went cold.
Then:
MR. HAYES SUBMITTED HIS RESIGNATION EFFECTIVE LAST FRIDAY.
I read it twice.
Teresa reached for the laptop.
“No.”
Walter sat back slowly.
“He quit?”
Apparently.
No transfer.
No four-year posting.
No corporate relocation.
David had resigned before telling us he was leaving the country.
Then Walter asked:
“Why would he lie about something that big?”
I had an answer forming.
Not yet proof.
An hour later, David’s personal American Express statement arrived through financial disclosure channels from our accountant.
He had booked two international tickets.
Not Tokyo.
Rome.
Departure:
Three days later.
Passengers:
DAVID HAYES.
VANESSA COLE.
I knew the name.
Not well.
Vanessa was the founder of a boutique investment company David had mentioned repeatedly over the last year.
He always called her “brilliant.”
Apparently he forgot to mention the diamond.
Teresa’s face went white.
“She’s married.”
“Not according to current records,” Rachel said over speakerphone.
Walter looked at me.
“Did David tell us to move here because he wanted us out of his way?”
That was when a new email arrived.
From David.
SUBJECT: CARE ARRANGEMENTS.
Attached was a document I had never seen.
It listed me as:
PRIMARY FAMILY CAREGIVER — TERESA AND WALTER HAYES.
Duration:
48 months.
Household location:
Eleanor’s residence.
Under financial responsibility:
Housing provided by Eleanor.
Meals and day-to-day support provided by Eleanor.
I stared at the screen.
David had not only volunteered my time.
He had created a written plan around it.
Then I scrolled to the bottom.
May you like
There was a signature under my name.
It wasn’t mine.
