Chapter 2 - THE CHILD HIS MOTHER HELPED HIM HIDE
Emily did not scream.
That almost scared me more.
She simply stared at the photograph while Sophie slept against her chest.
“Noah is five?”
Rachel nodded through tears.
“Yes.”
Emily looked at Daniel.
“Our sixth anniversary was in October.”
Daniel's mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
Emily understood.
“You were sleeping with her before our first anniversary.”
“It's complicated.”
I felt Michael move beside me.
My brother had remained silent until then, but his jaw tightened at those two words.
Emily laughed.
There was no humor in it.
“Complicated?”
Rachel wiped her face.
“I didn't know about you at first.”
Emily turned toward her.
“What?”
“Daniel told me he was separated.”
Daniel said sharply:
“Rachel.”
“No.”
She stood.
For the first time since we arrived, Rachel looked angry at him instead of afraid.
“You said she had moved back in temporarily because she was pregnant.”
Emily stared.
Rachel continued.
“He told me Sophie was an accident and you two were working out custody.”
Daniel stepped toward her.
“Stop talking.”
Detective Carter immediately moved between them.
“Actually, I'd strongly recommend everyone let Ms. Monroe finish.”
Lorraine snapped:
“This woman has no idea what she's saying.”
Rachel looked at her.
“You've been sending Noah birthday presents for five years.”
Lorraine went silent.
Emily's face changed.
Not surprise anymore.
Betrayal settling into shape.
“You knew.”
Lorraine crossed her arms.
“Daniel is my son.”
Emily whispered:
“And Sophie is your granddaughter.”
Lorraine looked away.
That answer was worse than words.
My daughter had spent six years trying to win this woman's approval.
She hosted Thanksgiving.
Remembered Lorraine's medication.
Drove her to medical appointments after knee surgery.
Paid for a family vacation when Lorraine claimed money was tight.
And the entire time, Lorraine had been buying birthday presents for the child her son had with another woman.
Emily handed Sophie to me.
“Mom.”
I took her.
Emily walked slowly into the living room.
No one stopped her.
She looked around the room.
The Christmas tree she had decorated.
The stockings she had embroidered.
Family photographs on the mantel.
One showed Daniel holding newborn Sophie.
Another showed Lorraine smiling beside them at the hospital.
Emily picked it up.
“What date was Noah born?”
Rachel whispered:
“March seventeenth.”
Emily stared at the photograph in her hand.
Sophie was born June second the same year.
Three months apart.
My stomach turned.
Daniel had gotten two women pregnant within weeks of each other.
Rachel seemed to realize what Emily was calculating.
“I didn't know you were pregnant.”
Emily looked at her.
“I believe you.”
Daniel flinched.
It was the first mercy Emily offered that night.
And it wasn't for him.
Detective Carter stepped into the house after Deputy Cole confirmed the warrant.
“We need everyone to remain in the main living area.”
“What exactly are you looking for?” Daniel demanded.
Carter's expression stayed flat.
“Documents, electronic devices, financial records, and anything connected to the fraudulent property transfer.”
Lorraine gave a dismissive laugh.
“You're treating paperwork like organized crime.”
Carter looked at her.
“Forgery involving real property, identity theft, bank fraud, and conspiracy are crimes whether they happen in an alley or beside a Christmas tree.”
That shut Lorraine up.
Two investigators entered.
One headed toward Daniel's home office.
Another photographed the dining room.
Emily turned to me.
“What exactly is in the Carter folder?”
I hesitated.
She noticed.
“Mom.”
“There are things I didn't want to tell you until I knew they were real.”
Her face hardened.
“Tonight would be a good time.”
So I opened the folder again.
Eight weeks earlier, when Detective Carter first contacted me, she had shown me more than the fraudulent mortgage.
She had shown me a series of transfers from Emily and Daniel's joint account.
Small enough to look ordinary.
$1,800.
$2,300.
$1,250.
Monthly.
For almost five years.
They were labeled consulting fees.
The money went to Rachel.
Emily stared.
“He used our account to support them?”
Rachel shook her head.
“I never saw those payments.”
Carter looked at her.
“That is something we'll verify.”
Rachel looked genuinely confused.
“Daniel paid Noah's preschool himself.”
Carter opened another file.
“No. Lorraine did.”
Everyone turned.
Lorraine's eyes narrowed.
Carter continued.
“The payments labeled as transfers to Ms. Monroe were routed through an account in her name, then moved within twenty-four hours.”
“Where?” I asked.
Detective Carter looked at Lorraine.
“To an account jointly controlled by Lorraine Bennett and Daniel Bennett.”
Rachel stared.
“You used my name?”
Daniel said nothing.
Carter nodded.
“Ms. Monroe's identity may have been used to disguise transfers.”
Rachel sank onto the couch.
Suddenly the mistress wasn't only an accomplice.
She might also have been another financial shield.
Emily looked exhausted.
“So where did the money actually go?”
Carter glanced at Daniel.
“That is what we've been investigating.”
One of the search officers appeared from the hallway.
“Detective.”
He held up a key.
“Found this taped beneath the desk.”
Daniel stood.
Carter stopped him with one look.
“What does it open?”
“I don't know.”
The officer shook his head.
“There's a floor safe in the basement.”
Lorraine's face went white.
Carter saw it.
“So you do know.”
“I have no idea what you're talking about.”
They went downstairs.
I stayed with Emily and Sophie.
Five minutes later, Carter returned carrying a metal document box.
Daniel looked as though he might be sick.
Inside were passports.
Bank statements.
Three prepaid phones.
A stack of cash.
And several life-insurance policies.
One had Emily's name on it.
Insured: Emily Bennett.
Beneficiary: Daniel Bennett.
Coverage amount:
$2,000,000.
Emily looked at Daniel.
“When did you take this out?”
He remained silent.
Detective Carter checked the date.
“Eleven months ago.”
“I never signed this.”
Carter studied the page.
“No.”
She turned another sheet.
“It appears someone else did.”
Lorraine suddenly sat down.
For the first time all evening, she looked frightened.
Emily noticed.
“So this wasn't just about the house.”
Nobody answered.
Then Sophie woke in my arms.
She looked at her mother and whispered:
“Mommy, are we going home?”
Emily's face broke.
Before she could answer, Detective Carter closed the insurance file.
“No,” she said softly.
“Not tonight.”
May you like
Then she looked at Daniel.
“Because until we know why a forged two-million-dollar policy was taken out on Mrs. Bennett, I don't think she should spend another minute under this roof.”
