Chapter 6: The Money Was in My Uncle's Account
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Uncle Raymond stared at the document as though the numbers might rearrange themselves if he looked long enough.
Then he stepped backward.
“No,” he said.
“That's impossible.””
Grandma Denise held out her hand.
“Martin, let me see that.””
The attorney passed her the page.
She examined the receiving account, then looked at her son.
“Raymond, explain.””
My uncle shook his head.
“I've never touched Malik's money.””
Mom suddenly spoke.
“That's not true.””
Every head turned toward her.
Raymond looked at his sister.
“What did you just say?””
Mom wiped her cheeks.
“You told me you could hold it temporarily.””
Grandma's expression changed.
“Hold what temporarily?””
Mom pointed at the document.
“The money.””
Raymond laughed nervously.
“Renee, be careful.””
“I'm done protecting you.””
“Protecting me from what?””
“You told me Curtis couldn't be trusted with the money. You said you knew someone who could put it somewhere safe.””
Raymond looked at Grandma.
“Mother, she's lying.””
Martin placed his briefcase on the dining table.
“Let's slow down. Mr. Carter, do you recognize this account number?””
Raymond shook his head.
“No.””
“Is it connected to a business you own?””
“No.””
“Do you have access to any account with this number?””
“No!””
His answer came too quickly.
Martin noticed.
“Then you won't object to providing a statement from your bank confirming that.””
Raymond's face tightened.
“I don't need to prove anything to you.””
Grandma stood.
“You absolutely do when your grandson's inheritance has disappeared.””
Raymond pointed at her.
“Don't turn this into some courtroom drama. Renee is the one who signed the papers. She's the one who took the loan. Why am I suddenly the criminal?””
Mom stepped forward.
“Because you received the money!””
“I never received anything!””
“You told me to transfer it!””
“Stop saying that!””
Their voices rose over each other.
I sat on the couch, feeling as though I had become invisible again.
Except this time, the adults weren't ignoring me because I had done something wrong.
They were fighting over something that belonged to me.
Grandma noticed my expression.
She crossed the room and sat beside me.
“Baby, none of this is your fault.””
I nodded, but my eyes remained on the document.
“Did someone steal my money?””
She didn't answer immediately.
“We're going to find out.””
Martin requested that everyone stop discussing the financial transactions until he could preserve the evidence.
Then he asked Raymond to explain why his account appeared on the withdrawal record.
Raymond rubbed his forehead.
“Fine. I did open an account for Renee.””
Mom looked up.
Grandma's eyes narrowed.
“You did what?””
“It was a business account. She needed somewhere to receive payments from clients.””
Martin asked, “When?””
“About eight months ago.””
“And who controlled it?””
Raymond hesitated.
“Renee.””
Martin looked at Mom.
“Did you have access to the account?””
She nodded.
“Did you authorize any withdrawals from Malik's investment account?””
“No.””
Raymond interrupted.
“She told me it was a family loan.””
Mom spun around.
“I never said that!””
“You told me the money was available.””
“Because Curtis said he could release it!””
“Then why did you send it through my account?””
“Because you said it was safer!””
Raymond slammed his palm against the table.
“I never said that!””
Grandma raised her voice for the first time.
“Enough!””
The room fell silent.
She looked at both her children.
“Neither of you is going to shout over my grandson's future.””
Martin took out his phone.
“I've contacted the bank's fraud department. We need to establish the transaction trail.””
He asked Raymond for permission to inspect the account records.
Raymond refused.
Martin nodded.
“Then we'll obtain them through the appropriate legal process.””
Raymond laughed.
“You can't just demand my bank records.””
“No. But if the records are relevant to a suspected fraudulent withdrawal, the proper authorities can request them.””
Raymond looked toward the front door.
I noticed his hand moving toward his pocket.
He pulled out his car keys.
Grandma watched him.
“Where are you going?””
“Home.””
“You're not leaving until you explain why your name is connected to Malik's money.””
“I've explained enough.””
He walked toward the entrance.
Mom followed him.
“Raymond, don't leave.””
He turned around.
“You're the one who put me in this position!””
Then he looked directly at me.
“Malik, listen. Your mother and I were trying to help you. Nobody was stealing anything.””
I stared at him.
“Then why didn't you tell me?””
He opened his mouth.
No answer.
He left.
The front door closed behind him.
For a moment, the only sound was the birthday music still playing from the speaker.
Grandma reached over and turned it off.
Martin returned to his briefcase.
“I need to ask about the account your grandfather established.””
Grandma nodded.
“Thomas opened it before he became ill. He told me it was for Malik's education and future.””
“Do you remember which institution held it?””
“First Southern Trust.””
Martin looked at the statement again.
“Then we have another issue. The account appears to have been closed.””
Grandma gripped the edge of the table.
“Closed?””
“Yes.””
“When?””
“Three months ago.””
Mom began crying again.
Martin turned another page.
“There's a closing authorization. It indicates the beneficiary requested a full distribution.””
I stood.
“But I didn't.””
“I know,” Martin said gently.
Grandma looked at the signature.
Then she noticed something in the corner.
A date.
Her expression changed.
“Martin, read that date.””
He did.
Then he checked the document behind it.
“April seventeenth.””
Grandma slowly shook her head.
“That's impossible.””
“Why?””
She looked at me.
“Because April seventeenth was the day Malik was at school on a field trip.””
I remembered it immediately.
We had visited the Georgia Aquarium.
I had taken pictures beside the whale shark tank. My teacher had posted them on the school website.
I had been nowhere near a bank.
Martin photographed the paperwork.
“That could be important.””
Grandma stared at my mother.
“Who took him to the bank?””
Mom didn't answer.
Martin asked again.
“Who presented the authorization?””
Mom lowered her eyes.
Then she whispered, “I did.””
Grandma closed her eyes.
“You used his name while he was at school?””
“I was trying to get the money released.””
“And what happened to it?””
Mom's lips trembled.
“I didn't keep it.””
“Where is it?””
She looked toward the staircase.
“I paid Curtis.””
Martin stopped writing.
“How much?””
Mom swallowed.
“Three hundred and eighty thousand dollars.””
The room went silent.
I felt as if someone had struck me.
My grandfather had saved that money for me.
For college.
For a first home.
For a future I hadn't even started imagining.
And my mother had handed it to a man I had never met.
Grandma stood very slowly.
“Renee, you didn't just risk the house.””
She looked at me.
“You gave away his entire future.””
Mom began sobbing.
Then Martin's phone rang.
He listened for a few seconds before speaking.
“Are you certain?””
Another pause.
He looked at Grandma.
“The bank has identified the destination of the final transfer.””
Grandma asked, “Where?””
Martin turned the phone toward us.
The receiving account wasn't connected to Curtis's business.
It belonged to a company registered under a different name.
A company whose registered owner was listed as...
*Malik Thomas Carter.*
My name.
May you like
My date of birth.
And a company I had never heard of.
