Chapter 2 - LORRAINE'S FIRST HUSBAND
Claire had been married to Mark for nine years.
Never once had anyone mentioned that Lorraine had another husband.
By noon, Priya had obtained enough public records to confirm it.
Lorraine Bennett had married Gregory Pike thirty-four years earlier.
The marriage lasted eleven months.
There were almost no photographs.
No children.
No public connection afterward.
Yet decades later, Pike was approving a loan backed by documents Claire claimed she had never signed.
“That doesn’t happen accidentally,” Claire said.
“No,” Priya replied. “But we still need evidence.”
Claire walked through Paris while they spoke, passing cafés and flower stalls without really seeing them.
“What happens now?”
“The lender investigates. We preserve everything. And you do absolutely nothing based on anger.”
“That won’t be difficult.”
Priya laughed softly.
“That might be why you’re dangerous to them.”
Claire stopped beside the Seine.
Her phone buzzed.
Dana.
For once, Claire answered.
Dana spoke before Claire could say anything.
“I didn’t know.”
“About which part?”
“The guarantee.”
“Did you know about the Arizona property?”
Silence.
Claire leaned against the stone railing.
“Dana.”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“Mom said it was an investment.”
“With my money?”
“I didn’t know it was yours.”
“But you own ten percent.”
“On paper.”
Claire frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“Mom told me she was building something for all of us.”
“All of you.”
Dana started crying.
“I know how that sounds.”
“It sounds accurate.”
“Claire, please. I’m scared.”
Claire heard voices in the background.
Mark.
Lorraine.
Someone arguing.
Then Dana lowered her voice.
“There’s something else.”
“What?”
“I found a folder in Mom’s suitcase.”
Claire straightened.
“What kind of folder?”
“Bank records.”
“Take pictures.”
“I already did.”
A stream of photographs arrived.
Claire enlarged the first one.
Transfers.
Dozens of them.
Some from the joint marital account.
Some from business accounts.
Some from entities Claire had never heard of.
Then she saw one enormous transfer.
$310,000.
The originating account belonged to Bennett Consulting Group.
Claire’s company.
Her private business.
Her hands went cold.
“That account requires my authorization.”
Dana whispered, “Apparently somebody figured out how to get around that.”
Claire immediately forwarded everything to Elena and Priya.
Elena called twenty minutes later.
“We found the mechanism.”
“How?”
“Someone created secondary authorization credentials.”
Claire’s mouth went dry.
“Who?”
“We don’t know yet.”
But Priya had discovered something else.
The credentials had been created eighteen months earlier.
And according to the authorization log, the request had originated from Claire’s home computer.
On a date Claire had been in Chicago for a conference.
Someone had used her computer while she was away.
Only two people had known her password.
May you like
Claire.
And her husband.
