Chapter 4 - The Bouncing Deposit
The phone rang three times before my mother answered. Her voice was frantic, breathless, and dripping with defensive irritation.
"Maddie? Where are you? We've been trying to call you all morning! The country club coordinator is throwing a fit because the wire transfer from the escrow account was flagged as invalid! You need to call your father's bank right now and authorize the release of the funds!"
I leaned back against my hospital pillows, keeping my voice cool, calm, and crystalline.
"Good morning, Mom. I'm still recovering from my spine surgery, thanks for asking."
"Don't give me that tone of voice!" Linda snapped, her voice rising in volume. "Brianna is crying in the powder room because her dream wedding is falling apart! The florist is threatening to pull the centerpieces, and the photographer wants cash upfront! How can you be so selfish when your own sister is trying to have her special day?"
"My special day," I repeated slowly. "You know, Mom, spending nine hours having steel rods bolted into my vertebrae wasn't exactly my idea of a luxury vacation either."
"That was scheduled weeks ago! You could have planned around it!" Linda shrieked, completely detached from reality. "Listen to me, Maddie: Richard is driving down to the bank right now to fix whatever glitch you caused in the paperwork. You are going to sign whatever the teller puts in front of you, do you hear me?"
"Mom," I said softly.
"What?!"
"Look out the window of the country club ballroom."
Silence stretched across the line for five seconds.
"What are you talking about?" Linda muttered, her footsteps echoing over the phone as she presumably walked toward the balcony doors. "Why would I—"
Clatter.
A sharp gasp echoed through the receiver.
"Mom?"
"Maddie..." Linda’s voice was suddenly trembling, devoid of its previous arrogance. "Maddie, why are there police cruisers in the country club parking lot?"
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"Because," I replied, my voice dropping into a register so cold it felt like winter, "federal title fraud is a serious crime, Mom. And Harrison Vance isn't the only one about to find out what happens when you steal from someone who spent twelve years paying attention to the fine print."
Before she could scream another word, I hung up.
