PART 20
We sat around the dining table.
I placed a folder in front of me.
Selina’s eyes locked onto it.
Godfrey leaned forward.
I said.
“Before the settlement is released, there’s something the lawyers required.”
“What?”
“A full accounting of family finances.”
Selina stiffened.
“Why?”
“Because I told them I had been supporting family members.”
Godfrey said.
“That’s normal.”
“I agree.”
“So I need everyone to confirm how my previous money was used.”
Silence.
Then Selina smiled.
“That’s easy.”
“Most of it went into the house.”
I nodded.
“How much?”
“I don’t remember exactly.”
Godfrey said.
“And my business.”
“How much?”
He glanced at Selina.
“Maybe twenty-five thousand.”
I opened the folder.
“Twenty-seven thousand four hundred.”
His expression changed.
I continued.
“Nine thousand two hundred for the SUV.”
“Six thousand eight hundred in electronics.”
“Over five thousand in restaurants and travel.”
Selina said.
“Those are family expenses.”
I looked at her.
“Then let’s discuss Phedra.”
The room went quiet.
PART 21
I placed another page on the table.
“Eleven months of cancer.”
“Two medical visits.”
“Less than one thousand dollars from the money I sent went toward her treatment after diagnosis.”
Selina’s face tightened.
“We already explained.”
“No.”
“You justified.”
“That’s different.”
Godfrey said.
“She was stealing.”
I looked at him.
“What did she steal?”
“Jewelry.”
“The necklace belonged to her.”
“She tried to sell it.”
“For treatment.”
Godfrey stood.
“You came here pretending this was about money.”
I looked at him.
“It is.”
He pointed at the folder.
“You said you needed signatures.”
“I do.”
“For what?”
I smiled.
“To establish who admits receiving my money.”
Nobody spoke.
Then the front doorbell rang.
PART 22
Selina frowned.
“Who is that?”
I stood.
“My lawyer.”
Renee entered first.
Marcus Bell followed.
Then a uniformed investigator from the financial crimes unit.
Godfrey’s face lost color.
Selina stood.
“What is this?”
Renee placed her briefcase on the table.
“This is a formal preservation notice concerning financial records tied to funds transferred by Mr. Mercer over the last four years.”
Selina looked at me.
“Damian.”
I said nothing.
The investigator introduced himself.
Detective Aaron Cole.
He explained that no one was being arrested at that moment.
He also explained that records had been preserved.
Bank documents.
Business filings.
Transfer histories.
Ownership records.
Godfrey started shouting.
“This is insane.”
Renee said.
“Sit down.”
He actually did.
PART 23
Selina pointed at me.
“You trapped us.”
I looked at her.
“Yes.”
Her mouth opened.
Then closed.
I continued.
“There is no million-dollar settlement.”
Silence.
Godfrey stared at me.
“What?”
“I received a small workplace compensation payment.”
“Not one million.”
“The number was bait.”
Selina grabbed the table.
“You lied?”
“Yes.”
“You lied to your own mother?”
I looked toward the backyard.
“You let my wife sleep in a storage shed while she had cancer.”
“I’m comfortable with one lie.”
Godfrey’s face turned red.
“You bastard.”
Renee said.
“Careful.”
Godfrey stepped back.
I opened my phone.
Then played his recorded call.
One million is serious money.
I can turn that into three.
Two hundred thousand to start.
Don’t get stuck in the past.
The room went silent again.
Then I played Selina’s call.
Your brother has experience now.
Maybe fifty thousand for treatment.
I can control the rest.
My mother looked like she had stopped breathing.
