Chapter 8 - The Cabinet Key
The brass key was missing. Daniel checked the desk drawer, then the small lockbox in his closet. The cabinet itself sat in a storage room above the garage, untouched since his father's funeral. Inside were old tax records, business contracts, and a sealed envelope marked with his father's handwriting: For Daniel, if the account is ever questioned.
The envelope had been opened and resealed. Daniel didn't touch the papers further. He photographed the cabinet as he found it and called Mark, who advised him to let the investigator document the contents.
The letter explained that Daniel's father had created a college fund for Jake and any future children, separate from the company's operating money. The fund could not be transferred to a spouse or used as collateral without the trustees' approval. A copy of the original trust agreement was attached.
Mark compared it with the later paperwork. “The transfer to Northstar may have violated the trust terms. We'll need the bank records to confirm whether the money actually left the fund and where it went.”
“You're making a mistake,” she said without greeting him. “You have no idea what Jake has been telling people.”
“I know what I saw on camera.”
“The lab found a medication that wasn't prescribed to me.”
Silence. Then Vanessa said, “You were always too trusting. That's why I had to handle things for you.”
Northstar Advisory had sent money to a second company—one registered under a name Daniel recognized immediately.
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The original trust terms required two trustee signatures and written notice before any transfer. A later authorization carried what looked like Daniel's digital signature, but the bank's access log showed the approval came from another device. Mark asked the bank to preserve the records rather than treating the signature as proof by itself.
It belonged to Vanessa's brother.
