Chapter 2: The Name on the Account
“That's impossible.””
Mom's voice trembled.
She reached for Dad's phone, but he pulled it away.
“Marcus, give me that.””
“Why?””
“Because I want to see what he's talking about.””
Jordan shook his head.
“You've already seen it, Mom.””
She turned toward him.
“Don't you dare speak to me like that.””
“Then stop pretending you don't know what this is.””
Dad raised his hand.
“Both of you. Sit down.””
Nobody moved.
He looked at my mother.
“Denise, did you open another company using my information?””
Mom's lips parted.
“No.””
“Then why is your name attached to it?””
“I don't know!””
Jordan took another step forward.
“Mom, I have the registration documents.””
He pulled a folded envelope from his jacket.
I hadn't even noticed it before.
He placed it on the coffee table.
Dad opened it.
There were printed pages, account summaries, and copies of electronic signatures.
I recognized the logo at the top.
Carter Financial Solutions.
My hands began shaking.
“Jordan, where did you get those?””
“From the email account connected to the registration.””
“You went through my emails?””
“No. I went through the company's records. The documents were forwarded to the accounting department.””
Dad turned a page.
His eyebrows drew together.
“There's a date here.””
Mom swallowed.
“What date?””
“Three months ago.””
He looked at her.
“You told me you were visiting your sister that weekend.””
Mom's eyes filled with tears.
“I was.””
Jordan shook his head.
“You weren't.””
“Jordan, please.””
“You were at a bank.””
Mom turned away.
Dad stared at her.
“Denise?””
She wiped her cheek.
“I can explain.””
I felt the room spinning.
Three months ago.
That was long before my transfer.
Long before Tyler called me.
Long before Jordan found the money.
I looked at my mother.
“Mom, what did you do?””
She didn't answer.
Dad slowly sat down.
“Denise, I need you to tell me what's happening.””
She walked toward him.
“Marcus, listen to me. I never intended for this to happen.””
He stared at her.
“That's not an answer.””
She reached for his hand.
He pulled it away.
Jordan picked up another page.
“Dad, there's something else.””
I wanted to scream.
There was always something else.
“Jordan,” I whispered, “please stop.””
He looked at me.
“You've been asking me to stop since the day you found out I had the documents.””
“Because you're destroying everyone!””
“No, Maya. I'm trying to find out who actually did this.””
Dad looked between us.
“Did what?””
Jordan placed a second document on the table.
“The company received several deposits before Maya transferred the eight thousand dollars.””
Dad studied the numbers.
“Where did those deposits come from?””
“That's what I've been trying to figure out.””
I stepped closer.
“Wait.””
Jordan turned toward me.
“What?””
“Those deposits weren't there when I made the transfer.””
He frowned.
“How do you know?””
“Because I checked the account.””
The words escaped before I could stop them.
Dad looked up.
“You checked the account?””
I nodded.
“I was trying to find Tyler's payment.””
Jordan's expression changed.
“You knew the company existed?””
“No. I thought it was a normal business account.””
“Then why didn't you ask Dad?””
“Because I didn't know it was his account!””
Jordan exhaled sharply.
“That's exactly the problem. You didn't check anything.””
Dad rubbed his forehead.
“Who is Tyler?””
I hesitated.
Mom looked at me.
“Your boyfriend?””
I nodded.
Dad's expression hardened.
“Why did he need eight thousand dollars?””
I explained what Tyler had told me.
The threats.
The money.
The urgency.
The promise to repay me.
When I finished, Dad looked disappointed rather than angry.
“Maya, did you verify any of this?””
“No.””
“Did you see the threats?””
“He showed me messages.””
“From whom?””
“I don't know.””
Dad closed his eyes.
Jordan leaned against the wall.
“That's what I thought.””
I turned toward him.
“You don't know anything about my relationship.””
“I know Tyler called you eleven times the night you transferred that money.””
My stomach tightened.
“How do you know that?””
“Because the company phone records showed the calls.””
I stared at him.
Dad looked up.
“Why would Tyler be calling the company?””
Jordan shook his head.
“He wasn't.””
He opened his phone.
“Dad, look at this.””
A call log appeared.
The number was familiar.
I had saved it under Tyler's name.
But the business records showed something different.
It belonged to an employee of Carter Financial Solutions.
I stepped backward.
“No.””
Jordan nodded.
“Exactly.””
“That doesn't make sense.””
“Then explain why the same number called you from two different phones.””
My eyes filled.
I had trusted Tyler.
I'd defended him when Jordan said he didn't like the way Tyler spoke to me.
I'd ignored every warning.
And now I couldn't even tell whether the person I'd been trying to help was real.
Dad stood up.
“Jordan, I want every document you've found.””
“I have copies.””
“Good.””
Mom suddenly grabbed Dad's arm.
“Marcus, don't do this.””
He turned.
“Do what?””
“Don't involve outsiders. We can handle this as a family.””
Dad stared at her.
“If somebody used my identity to open a company, this is no longer just a family disagreement.””
Mom began crying.
“Please.””
He gently removed her hand.
“Denise, what aren't you telling me?””
She looked at me.
Then at Jordan.
Finally, she whispered something that made my brother's face go completely still.
“I didn't open that company.””
Dad frowned.
“Then who did?””
Mom swallowed.
“Your father did.””
The room fell silent.
I looked at Dad.
“What?””
Mom pointed toward the hallway.
“Your father. Marcus, your father opened it before he died.””
Dad's face changed.
“My father has been dead for six years.””
“I know.””
“Then how could he have opened a company three months ago?””
Mom closed her eyes.
“Because the registration was prepared years earlier.””
Jordan slowly lowered his phone.
“Mom,” he whispered, “what are you saying?””
She looked at him.
May you like
And then she said the words that made everything worse.
“Your grandfather left something behind. Something neither of you was supposed to find until you turned twenty-five.””
