Chapter 17 - The Woman Who Kept Copies
The former employee, a scheduling coordinator named June Mercer, had questioned why Stillwater invoiced the foundation for appointments no clinician attended. She had kept lawful copies of her own work schedules after raising the concern internally.
"I was told to stop asking," June said in her interview. "I quit. When I saw the story about that child, I recognized the address."
Her records showed Stillwater began billing eight weeks before the party, when I started recording Lily's fatigue. Several dates matched my notebook. Other sessions were approved under a provider account whose owner said she'd never visited the estate.
The documents did not replace medical findings or witness accounts. They connected them, giving investigators reason to seek more records through legal channels.
The foundation's auditors separately identified extensive unsupported transfers to Stillwater and its affiliates. Ethan made the findings available to regulators and offered his cooperation. The board also announced new safeguards and a plan to repay affected programs where the money could be recovered.
At home, Lily asked whether her mother had known about the fraud.
"She suspected something was wrong," Ethan told her. "She wrote down questions and tried to get people to answer them."
"Would she have been proud of me?"
He knelt. "Yes. And she would have been proud of you on the days you couldn't talk, too. You didn't have to solve this for the adults."
Lily leaned into his shoulder. For once she didn't look toward the door.
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Months passed before the prosecutor announced charges involving child endangerment and financial fraud. Vivienne and Graham denied the allegations through their attorneys. No verdict had been reached, and Ethan refused to call a charge the same thing as a conviction.
Then Vivienne requested permission to send Lily a letter.
