Chapter 5: The Record That Should Not Exist
At eight the next morning, we stood inside the county records office.
A clerk named Helen studied the parcel number.
“This file has been accessed six times this month.”
“By whom?” Lucas asked.
“Christopher Hale, Florence Hale, Daniel Price, and a company called Marsh Harbor Holdings.”
Daniel leaned over the counter.
“Marsh Harbor is not named in any document I prepared.”
Helen turned her screen.
“It filed a purchase notice yesterday.”
I gripped the counter.
“They already have a buyer?”
“They have someone claiming to be a buyer.”
The office doors opened.
Christopher walked in with Florence and another attorney.
“You are violating the court’s preservation order,” Florence said.
Helen raised an eyebrow.
“This is a public records office.”
The attorney placed an order on the counter.
“Access to the original file is temporarily restricted.”
Lucas read it.
“You requested this at six last night.”
“We move quickly,” Christopher said.
“You mean you hide quickly,” I replied.
Christopher stepped toward me.
“This ends if you come with us.
You can still have your wedding and your parents can keep their home.”
“You want a wife or a signature?”
“Must you make everything ugly?”
My father moved beside me.
“You made it ugly when you raised your hand to my daughter.”
Christopher looked past him.
“Samuel, you took the money.
Do you truly want a judge examining that?”
Helen slid a scanned page across her desk.
“There is another problem.”
Florence reached for it, but Helen covered it with her hand.
“The transfer was notarized by Amelia Grant on March 18 last year.”
Daniel nodded slowly.
“I remember Amelia.
She retired.”
“She passed away fourteen months before that date,” Helen said.
No one spoke.
Christopher recovered first.
“Then the scanner entered the wrong year.”
“The year appears in three places,” Helen replied.
Florence pointed at the screen.
“Clerical mistakes happen.”
Helen turned to us.
“Notary seals have registration numbers.
This seal was canceled when Amelia’s family returned it.”
Lucas took a photograph of the screen.
The attorney grabbed his phone.
“Delete that.”
“No,” Helen said.
“He may photograph a public index.”
Christopher put his phone to his ear.
“Move the hearing forward.
Now.”
A printer started behind Helen.
She lifted the final page and stared at Samuel.
“There was a payment attached to the original filing.
Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.”
“That was the medical loan,” Lucas said.
“The memo says ‘property consideration.’”
Florence took a canceled check from her attorney.
“And this,” she said, “is Samuel’s signature acknowledging receipt.”
My father accepted the check.
His fingers trembled over the faded ink.
“Dad?” I asked.
May you like
Samuel looked at Lucas, then at me.
“The signature is mine.”
