Chapter 12 - THE ROOM ABOVE THE BANK
Sofia arranged a meeting with the developer’s attorney. Emma insisted on attending.
The conference room sat above a bank, with wide windows overlooking a crowded Manhattan street. Patricia arrived with two lawyers and a leather folder. Nathan followed her in, looking as though he hadn’t slept.
Dante did not attend. Emma had asked him to stay away so the meeting would remain about her ownership, her father’s records, and the sale.
The developer’s attorney began. “Our client needs clear title. With the current dispute, we cannot move forward.”
Patricia opened her folder. “We can clear it.”
Sofia placed Thomas’s death certificate beside the paper bearing his impossible signature.
“Please explain this first.”
One of Patricia’s lawyers leaned over to read it. His expression changed. He asked for a break.
Patricia kept her eyes on Emma. “Your father understood the arrangement.”
“He was buried six months before that page was signed,” Emma said.
“I didn’t say he signed that page.”
Nathan turned toward her. “Mom.”
Patricia ignored him. “Documents pass through many offices.”
Sofia spoke evenly. “The investigator will follow that path.”
During the break, Nathan followed Emma into the hall.
“I told her to stop,” he said.
“I heard.”
“I should have stopped her at the church.”
“Yes.”
He rubbed his eyes. “I thought if we got married, everything would settle down. Mom would get the property, you’d get security, and I could keep everyone happy.”
“You never asked what I wanted.”
“I know.”
Emma believed he understood that now. It had taken him too long.
Back inside, Patricia’s lawyers said they needed time to review the records. The developer’s attorney ended the meeting. The purchase was off the table until the dispute was resolved.
Outside the building, reporters waited near the curb. Emma saw Patricia notice them. She straightened her jacket and walked toward the cameras.
“Mrs. Whitmore,” one called, “did you arrange for the bride’s dress to be cut?”
Patricia stopped. “My family has been subjected to false accusations by a disappointed young woman.”
Emma started toward the reporters, but Sofia touched her arm. “You can speak. Take one breath first.”
Emma did.
Then she faced the camera. “I left the wedding because my fiancé knew his friends had damaged my dress. Afterward, I learned the Whitmores were trying to transfer my share of my father’s company. The investigators have the records. My father’s name matters to me, and I intend to clear it.”
She said nothing more.
A few feet away, Patricia’s face had gone rigid.
That night, Emma received a call from an investigator.
“We’ve found the person who prepared the document dated after your father’s death,” he said.
“Who?”
“Patricia’s former assistant. She says she kept copies of the instructions. She’ll meet us in the morning.”
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In the background, Emma heard another voice speaking urgently to him.
The investigator came back on the line. “Ms. Walker, I need to call you back. Someone just reported the assistant missing.”
