Chapter 17 - The Statement
Vanessa's statement broke the case open.
She had watched Michael forge my signature.
She had also watched him create fake invoices.
Why hadn't she spoken sooner?
Because she had benefited too.
Trips.
Gifts.
Company expenses.
But once Michael was fired, she realized he planned to make her the fall guy.
So she talked.
Michael was charged with fraud, forgery, and theft-related offenses.
The criminal case would take months.
The divorce moved faster.
My attorney froze what remained of our accounts.
The condo was sold under court supervision.
The children's college money was repaid first.
That mattered more to me than anything else.
Rachel's $45,000 went back to Tom through their divorce settlement.
Michael's debts swallowed almost everything else.
One afternoon, he called me from his attorney's office.
“Can we talk?”
“We are talking.”
“I mean in person.”
“No.”
“Sarah, ten years has to mean something.”
“It does.”
“What?”
“It means you had ten years to tell the truth.”
He went quiet.
“I love the kids.”
“I know.”
“Don't turn them against me.”
“I won't.”
That surprised him.
I continued.
“But I also won't lie for you.”
He started crying.
For years, that sound would have broken me.
Now it only made me tired.
“Did Rachel ever mean anything?” I asked.
He sniffed.
“Not the way she thought.”
I hated him a little more for that.
“And Vanessa?”
“No.”
“So who mattered?”
Long silence.
Then he said, “Me.”
That was the truest thing he ever told me.
I ended the call.
That night, Rachel came to my door.
She looked thinner.
Older.
“I don't expect you to forgive me,” she said.
“Good.”
She nodded.
“I just wanted to give you this.”
She handed me an envelope.
Inside was a cashier's check for $18,000.
“What is this?”
“The money I got back from selling my jewelry and the car.”
I stared at her.
“Why are you giving it to me?”
“For the kids.”
I looked up.
She swallowed.
“I helped take from them. I should help put it back.”
For the first time since the party, I didn't know what to say.
May you like
Then she added quietly:
“There's one more thing you need to know about Michael.”
