Chapter 7 - The Blue Binder
“That signature could be copied,” Maya said. “We need the underlying records. This printout is a lead, not a conclusion.”
By that afternoon, counsel for the charity's remaining trustees had been notified of the disputed consent. The buyer was warned that Lauren denied approving the sale.
It bought time. It didn't solve anything.
On December twenty-seventh, the twins were discharged to Lauren with follow-up appointments and detailed instructions. Daniel drove behind the family transport van to make sure she reached the temporary apartment.
He carried groceries upstairs, set them down, and left when she said she needed sleep.
The next morning, Lauren returned to West 85th Street with Maya and an officer assigned to keep the retrieval peaceful.
Cole waited in the living room wearing the sweater she'd bought him in October.
“This is embarrassing,” he said.
“Then let's make it quick,” Maya replied.
Lauren collected the babies' clothes, her identification, and the feeding supplies. Cole leaned against the nursery door.
“You think that apartment they're putting you in is a life?”
She folded a yellow sleeper.
“It's a place where I can close the door without being afraid of who's on the other side.”
His jaw tightened.
In the kitchen, she opened the cabinet above the refrigerator.
The blue binder was still there.
Cole straightened.
“That's mine.”
Lauren held it against her chest.
“It's my father's recipes.”
“There are business records in it.”
Maya looked at him.
“I thought it was a cookbook.”
He said nothing.
He reached for the binder. The officer stepped between them and told him to step back.
Lauren's hands shook so badly that Maya carried it out.
At her office, they turned past pie crusts and roast chicken until Lauren found a folded envelope.
Inside was the transfer authorization she'd signed two years earlier.
The charity's real account number appeared on the first page.
Maya photographed its position, made copies, and arranged secure storage of the original. Daniel's attorney would examine it through the proper channels.
Lauren kept turning pages.
A note in her father's handwriting had been tucked behind his Christmas bread recipe.
Ask Lauren about second transfer. Daniel says vendor does not exist.
Beneath it, underlined twice:
May you like
Do not discuss with Cole until we have bank confirmation.
The note was dated the day before her father went into the hospital for the last time.
