“That’s because,” my mother shouted, “you seemed so busy with work overseas.”
The reason my grandmother and I couldn’t stay in touch was no longer a mystery.
The physical distance and the malicious wall my parents had built between us.
Everything finally fell into place, revealing the full ugliness of what they’d done.
“That’s enough excuses,” I said, taking a deep breath and signaling to Attorney Watson. “Let’s confirm the facts from a legal standpoint.”
Attorney Watson displayed on his tablet the so-called transfer agreement that Ashley was using as the basis for her ownership claim.
“Miss Thompson, you stated earlier that this document represents a legitimate transfer from Mandy 3 years ago. Correct?”
“Yes, just look at the date,” Ashley shouted, drenched in sweat.
“Indeed, it does say that. We’ll address the handwriting shortly, but first, we conducted a digital forensic analysis of the paper itself.”
He pressed a button, and a magnified image of the document appeared. Beneath the paper fibers, a pattern of tiny dots imperceptible to the naked eye emerged.
“This is a machine identification code. Many color laser printers embed microscopic yellow dots that record the printer’s serial number and the date and time of printing.”
Ashley’s mouth fell open.
“After analyzing these dots, we determined that this document was printed exactly 6 months ago.”
“That’s strange,” I said with a cold smile. “Why would a contract supposedly signed 3 years ago be written on paper that was printed just 6 months ago?”
Then I spoke slowly and clearly.
“In other words, this document was fabricated 6 months ago.”
I looked from my father to my mother and finally to Ashley.
“And I can think of exactly why you suddenly needed to forge it six months ago.”
My father’s face turned ashen.
“6 months ago, Grandma contacted you and said, ‘My work is finally stabilizing. I may return home soon,’ didn’t she?” I continued. “You panicked. Until then, you’d been illegally occupying Mandy’s house and treating it as Ashley’s based on nothing but verbal promises. But once Grandma came back and checked the property records, your lies would be exposed. So, you hurriedly forged documents to give yourselves a legal cover.”
“That’s not…”
“But if you’d asked me to sign it, you would have been exposed. So Ashley copied my handwriting and forged the signature with a date from 3 years ago. Isn’t that right?”
My father clutched his head and groaned.
I’d hit the mark.
For 3 years, they’d done whatever they pleased, counting on the fact that my grandmother wouldn’t return. But the moment they heard she might come back, they panicked and rushed to fabricate evidence.
That panic was what led to their fatal mistake.
Attorney Watson pressed on mercilessly.
“According to the handwriting analysis, this signature matches Miss Ashley Thompson’s handwriting with a 99% probability. This constitutes clear forgery of a private document with a seal. Furthermore, Miss Thompson falsely claimed to be Mandy’s legal guardian and withdrew $1 million from Mandy’s account under the pretense of maintenance costs for the vacation home. That constitutes fraud and embezzlement.”
Fraud.
Ashley began shaking uncontrollably.
“Prison. This can’t be real. Dad, say something. You’re the one who said, ‘As long as we backdate it, it’ll be fine.’”
“You idiot! Shut your mouth!” my father shouted, but it was far too late.
“The police have already been notified,” Attorney Watson said calmly. “Miss Thompson, criminal charges will be filed against you immediately.”
“No, no, no, no.”
Ashley grabbed her head and burst into tears.
“Dad told me to do it. He said Mandy’s stupid. She’ll never notice. He told me just copy her signature. I only did what I was told.”
“What? Ashley, you’re selling out your own father,” my father roared.
“But it’s the truth. Mom said it, too. She laughed and said Mandy will never be able to repay her student loans anyway, so we might as well put the money to good use ourselves.”
“Ashley, don’t say another word,” my mother screamed, lunging at her.
It was painfully ugly.
The very people who’d been preaching about family bonds and love just moments ago were now hurling accusations at each other, desperately trying to shift the blame.
My grandmother watched the spectacle with cold eyes and spoke quietly.
At those words, the shouting stopped dead.
“I’ve seen enough of your ugliness. Don’t stain this table any further.”
She turned to Attorney Watson.
“Mr. Watson, the revision to my will is complete. Correct?”
“Yes, Mrs. Hansen.”
Attorney Watson produced a new set of documents.
“This is the latest will. It fully revokes the inheritance rights of George Hansen, Sandra Hansen, and Ashley Thompson, as well as Ashley Thompson’s spouse, and designates Miss Mandy Hansen as the sole heir to the entire estate.”
“The entire estate?” my parents shouted in unison.
“Mom, please wait. Anything but that. We’re sorry. We’ve reflected on our actions. Please.”