Chapter 8 - The Blue Safe
Harbor Point had been our first office before Hale Maritime became a national company.
Now it was mostly storage—old ledgers, framed photographs, retired computers.
Daniel and two officers entered before us.
The rear door showed no damage.
“Valid badge,” Daniel said. “Someone used an employee credential.”
“Whose?”
He checked his phone.
“Yours.”
I almost laughed.
“My badge is in my desk.”
“Then it was cloned.”
The blue safe sat behind a false panel in Claire’s old office.
The brass key from box 417 fit.
Inside were original trust papers, three company ledgers, and a sealed plastic pouch containing a memory card.
Nothing had been taken.
But someone had been there.
A metal file cabinet stood open. Papers were scattered across the floor. One drawer had been pried apart.
Detective Ellis photographed everything.
Charles flipped through the trust documents. “These originals prove the co-trustee amendment conflicts with Claire’s instructions. Even without the forgery issue, Victoria’s version is legally vulnerable.”
“What about the ledgers?”
He handed one to me.
Several vendor names were circled in blue ink.
Vance Development Holdings.
My stomach tightened.
Victoria’s maiden name was Vance.
Her father, Harold Vance, ran one of the largest private real-estate firms in New York.
I looked at Charles. “Claire knew Victoria’s family?”
“Not Victoria personally.”
“But she knew the company.”
Detective Ellis took the ledger.
“Then we need to know why your late wife was tracking payments to them four years before you met Victoria.”
A floorboard creaked in the hallway.
Daniel turned.
“Police!” he shouted.
A shadow moved past the frosted glass.
Daniel ran.
We heard a door slam, then an engine roar behind the building.
Seconds later Daniel returned holding something small and black.
“A burner phone,” he said. “Dropped by whoever ran.”
The screen lit with one unread message.
May you like
It was from Victoria.
DID YOU GET THE LEDGERS?
