The blonde woman stood so abruptly that the bench scraped against the courtroom floor.<\/p>\n
Every head turned.<\/p>\n
She made it two steps toward the doors before the bailiff moved into the aisle.<\/p>\n
\u201cMa\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stopped.<\/p>\n
Her sunglasses were still on.<\/p>\n
The silence in the courtroom had changed. A moment earlier, people had been listening to a financial dispute. Now everyone understood that something else had entered the room.<\/p>\n
The judge leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is that woman?\u201d<\/p>\n
No one answered immediately.<\/p>\n
Margaret Wilkes sat rigid in the witness chair, one hand gripping the edge of the wooden rail.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the customer,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Brian\u2019s attorney rose.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour Honor, this is highly irregular.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel didn\u2019t move.<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Wilkes was asked whether she could identify the person. She has done so.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe pointed to a stranger in the gallery.\u201d<\/p>\n
The judge looked toward the back.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen perhaps we should establish who she is.\u201d<\/p>\n
The bailiff asked the woman for identification.<\/p>\n
She hesitated long enough for everyone to notice.<\/p>\n
Then she opened her handbag.<\/p>\n
My eyes went to Patricia.<\/p>\n
She was no longer watching the woman.<\/p>\n
She was looking at the floor.<\/p>\n
The bailiff read the name from the license and passed it forward to the clerk.<\/p>\n
\u201cElaine Porter.\u201d<\/p>\n
The name meant nothing to me.<\/p>\n
But Brian reacted.<\/p>\n
Not dramatically.<\/p>\n
Just a small tightening across his face.<\/p>\n
I turned toward him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know her.\u201d<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t look at me.<\/p>\n
Patricia did.<\/p>\n
Her eyes snapped toward her son.<\/p>\n
That was answer enough.<\/p>\n
Daniel saw it too.<\/p>\n
He stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour Honor, given the witness identification and the apparent connection between Ms. Porter and the Brooks family, we request that she remain available for questioning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian\u2019s attorney objected again.<\/p>\n
The judge cut him off.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs Ms. Porter a party to this matter?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen no one is detaining her without legal authority.\u201d<\/p>\n
The blonde woman exhaled.<\/p>\n
Relief crossed her face.<\/p>\n
Then the judge added, \u201cHowever, if counsel believes her testimony is relevant, you may issue the appropriate subpoena.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel nodded once.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elaine Porter looked directly at Patricia.<\/p>\n
It lasted perhaps half a second.<\/p>\n
Then she walked out.<\/p>\n
That glance followed me through the rest of the hearing.<\/p>\n
Margaret Wilkes repeated that Elaine strongly resembled the customer she remembered from the bank.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you certain?\u201d Brian\u2019s attorney asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m certain enough that I recognized her before anyone told me her name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou last saw the customer months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHuman memory is imperfect.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo is mine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen you could be wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI could.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian\u2019s attorney relaxed.<\/p>\n
Then Mrs. Wilkes continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut she has the same face, the same mouth, and the same little scar near her eyebrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
The attorney paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat scar?\u201d<\/p>\n
Mrs. Wilkes touched the outer edge of her left eyebrow.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe woman at my window had a pale line there. That woman does too.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hadn\u2019t noticed it from across the courtroom.<\/p>\n
But when Elaine had turned toward the doors, I had seen enough of her profile to understand why she could pass for me at a careless glance.<\/p>\n
Her age appeared close to mine.<\/p>\n
Her height was similar.<\/p>\n
Her hair was now blonde, but the roots were darker.<\/p>\n
With different makeup and my glasses, she could have resembled the photograph on my license.<\/p>\n
Especially if the teller expected the identification to be genuine.<\/p>\n
Especially if she wore my ring.<\/p>\n
Daniel asked one final question.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid the customer ever identify herself as anyone other than Angela Brooks?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she ever hesitate when stating the account holder\u2019s information?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo whoever she was, she knew the answers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The hearing ended with the judge ordering expanded discovery.<\/p>\n
Brian\u2019s allegation that I had hidden marital funds remained unresolved, but for the first time the court record contained direct testimony that another woman had impersonated me.<\/p>\n
Outside the courtroom, Brian caught my arm.<\/p>\n
I pulled away.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is Elaine Porter?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked over his shoulder.<\/p>\n
Patricia was approaching.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrian.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI barely know her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia stepped between us.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not the place.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s an acquaintance.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom where?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is none of your business.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel appeared beside me.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf she impersonated my client and stole marital assets, it is very much our business.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
Brian rubbed the back of his neck.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom knows her from years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many years?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia answered before he could.<\/p>\n
\u201cLong enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
I laughed quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re still trying to control what information comes out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is absurd.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen tell me who she is.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe used to work for a friend.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat friend?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s mouth hardened.<\/p>\n
Daniel touched my elbow lightly.<\/p>\n
Not now.<\/p>\n
I understood.<\/p>\n
Confronting Patricia in a courthouse hallway would produce nothing useful.<\/p>\n
We needed Elaine under oath.<\/p>\n
By that afternoon, Daniel\u2019s investigator had already started searching.<\/p>\n
Elaine Porter lived forty minutes away in a small town called Addison Creek.<\/p>\n
She was forty-one.<\/p>\n
Divorced.<\/p>\n
No children.<\/p>\n
She had worked as an office manager, bookkeeper and receptionist at several businesses over the previous fifteen years.<\/p>\n
One of those businesses stopped me cold.<\/p>\n
Brooks Family Construction.<\/p>\n
Brian\u2019s father\u2019s company.<\/p>\n
Elaine had worked there for nearly six years.<\/p>\n
Patricia had handled bookkeeping for that company after Brian\u2019s father became ill.<\/p>\n
They had known each other well.<\/p>\n
Very well.<\/p>\n
When Daniel told me, I sat silently across from his desk.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did Brian not mention that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe he didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe recognized her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said he barely knew her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat may be true.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked through the information the investigator had gathered.<\/p>\n
Elaine had left the company seven years earlier.<\/p>\n
That was before Brian and I married.<\/p>\n
Her old employee records listed Patricia as her supervisor.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy did she leave?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re finding out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas she fired?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGive me a day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s idea of giving him a day usually meant he already had someone searching courthouse filings, employment records and old contacts.<\/p>\n
I went home and did the only useful thing I could think of.<\/p>\n
I searched Patricia\u2019s social media.<\/p>\n
Most of her profile was mundane.<\/p>\n
Garden pictures.<\/p>\n
Church luncheons.<\/p>\n
Holiday dinners.<\/p>\n
Photographs of Brian.<\/p>\n
I scrolled backward year by year.<\/p>\n
Elaine appeared for the first time eight years earlier.<\/p>\n
A company Christmas dinner.<\/p>\n
She stood behind Patricia with one arm around another employee.<\/p>\n
Her hair was brown then.<\/p>\n
Much closer to mine.<\/p>\n
I saved the photograph.<\/p>\n
Another image showed them at a summer fundraiser.<\/p>\n
Patricia and Elaine stood side by side.<\/p>\n
Not supervisor and employee.<\/p>\n
Friends.<\/p>\n
I kept searching.<\/p>\n
Then, six and a half years earlier, Elaine disappeared completely.<\/p>\n
No more photographs.<\/p>\n
No comments.<\/p>\n
No tags.<\/p>\n
Nothing.<\/p>\n
I checked Patricia\u2019s old posts around that period.<\/p>\n
One stood out.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome people mistake kindness for weakness. Eventually you learn who deserves access to your life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dozens of friends had commented.<\/p>\n
I read each one.<\/p>\n
Most were vague.<\/p>\n
Stay strong.<\/p>\n
Praying for you.<\/p>\n
You did the right thing.<\/p>\n
Then I found a comment from someone named Carol Mason.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt least the company books are safe now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia had replied with a laughing emoji.<\/p>\n
I stared at the screen.<\/p>\n
Company books.<\/p>\n
Elaine had been a bookkeeper.<\/p>\n
I sent the screenshot to Daniel.<\/p>\n
He called five minutes later.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is useful.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re checking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCould Elaine have stolen from the company?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Patricia caught her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why would Patricia work with her now?\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause relationships built around secrets don\u2019t always make logical sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
The next morning his investigator found a retired employee willing to talk.<\/p>\n
Her name was Susan Pike.<\/p>\n
She had worked at Brooks Family Construction for nineteen years.<\/p>\n
Daniel arranged a meeting at a coffee shop.<\/p>\n
Susan was sixty-eight, small and sharp-eyed, with the posture of someone who had spent a lifetime noticing what happened around her.<\/p>\n
The moment I showed her Elaine\u2019s photograph, she frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat woman was trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind of trouble?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNumbers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you be more specific?\u201d<\/p>\n
Susan wrapped both hands around her coffee.<\/p>\n
\u201cChecks went missing. Vendor payments didn\u2019t match invoices. Small amounts at first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid anyone report it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Patricia handled it privately.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse quickened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElaine left.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas she fired?\u201d<\/p>\n
Susan\u2019s mouth twisted.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was the story.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPatricia said Elaine resigned for personal reasons. Nobody believed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Elaine steal money?\u201d<\/p>\n
Susan looked at me carefully.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t prove it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not asking you to.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was caught changing numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCaught by whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPatricia.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel asked, \u201cHow much money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe twelve thousand over time. Could\u2019ve been more.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy wasn\u2019t law enforcement involved?\u201d<\/p>\n
Susan gave a humorless laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Patricia hated scandal more than she hated theft.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sounded exactly like her.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Patricia recover the money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWere they enemies afterward?\u201d<\/p>\n
Susan considered that.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the strange part.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElaine came around again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter Mr. Brooks got sick.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian\u2019s father had died five years before I met Brian.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did Elaine do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHelped Patricia with paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEven after she\u2019d supposedly stolen from the company?\u201d<\/p>\n
Susan shrugged.<\/p>\n
\u201cLike I said. Strange.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel wrote something in his notebook.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid they remain in contact?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw them together at least twice after Elaine left.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce at a restaurant. Once at Patricia\u2019s house.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt the air leave my lungs.<\/p>\n
Patricia had lied.<\/p>\n
Not by omission.<\/p>\n
Directly.<\/p>\n
She had described Elaine as an old acquaintance.<\/p>\n
In reality, Elaine had been an employee accused of financial misconduct and later continued visiting Patricia privately.<\/p>\n
When the meeting ended, Daniel waited until Susan had driven away.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is starting to look organized.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt already looked organized.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNow we can demonstrate a prior relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBetween Patricia and the woman who impersonated me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan we subpoena Patricia\u2019s phone records?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can request relevant communications.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWill we get them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDepends on the judge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat if she deleted messages?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t always mean they\u2019re gone.\u201d<\/p>\n
My phone rang.<\/p>\n
Brian.<\/p>\n
I almost let it go to voicemail.<\/p>\n
Daniel nodded toward it.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnswer.\u201d<\/p>\n
I put the call on speaker.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian sounded shaken.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom says you\u2019re investigating Dad\u2019s company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m investigating Elaine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou talked to Susan Pike.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAngela, you need to be careful.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Daniel.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour mother said the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m serious.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo am I.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t know what you\u2019re digging into.\u201d<\/p>\n
That wording again.<\/p>\n
Digging.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you know that I don\u2019t?\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were problems before Dad died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat problems?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMoney.\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Elaine steal from the business?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what Mom said.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why did she keep seeing her?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian didn\u2019t answer.<\/p>\n
Daniel leaned closer to the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrian, this is Daniel Mercer. If you have information relevant to stolen marital funds, withholding it could become a serious issue.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian exhaled sharply.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not withholding anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen answer Angela\u2019s question.\u201d<\/p>\n
A long pause followed.<\/p>\n
Finally Brian said, \u201cBecause Elaine knew something about my dad.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt my skin go cold.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know exactly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou expect me to believe that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was nineteen. Nobody told me details.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you hear?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian\u2019s voice dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cI heard them fighting once.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMom and Elaine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDad.\u201d<\/p>\n
I waited.<\/p>\n
Brian continued reluctantly.<\/p>\n
\u201cElaine said if Mom ruined her life, she could ruin ours.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel and I looked at each other.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did your mother say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou remember enough to tell me this now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember Mom crying afterward.\u201d<\/p>\n
That surprised me.<\/p>\n
Patricia did not strike me as a woman who cried easily.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened next?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElaine disappeared from the company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd years later?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw her at Mom\u2019s house once.\u201d<\/p>\n
My hand tightened around the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told me you barely knew her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI barely do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you knew your mother was still in contact with her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew that when Margaret pointed at Elaine in court.\u201d<\/p>\n
He was silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrian.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
My voice went quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you still didn\u2019t tell me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know what it meant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t want to know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not fair.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s exactly what you\u2019ve been doing since the money disappeared. Every time evidence points away from me and toward something uncomfortable for your family, you decide confusion is safer.\u201d<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t answer.<\/p>\n
I ended the call.<\/p>\n
Daniel waited.<\/p>\n
Then he said, \u201cWe need Patricia under oath.\u201d<\/p>\n
Two weeks later, we got her.<\/p>\n
The deposition room was colder than necessary.<\/p>\n
Patricia arrived with her own attorney.<\/p>\n
That detail mattered.<\/p>\n
She was no longer behaving like a mother helping her son through a divorce.<\/p>\n
She was protecting herself.<\/p>\n
Daniel began with routine questions.<\/p>\n
Name.<\/p>\n
Address.<\/p>\n
Relationship to Brian.<\/p>\n
Relationship to me.<\/p>\n
Then Elaine.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you know Elaine Porter?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe worked for my late husband.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cApproximately?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSeveral years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you supervise her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOccasionally.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWere you friends?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at Patricia.<\/p>\n
Daniel slid several photographs onto the table.<\/p>\n
Company dinner.<\/p>\n
Fundraiser.<\/p>\n
Birthday gathering.<\/p>\n
Patricia barely looked at them.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople take pictures together.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Ms. Porter visit your home after leaving Brooks Family Construction?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t recall.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel produced Susan Pike\u2019s sworn statement.<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s attorney objected to characterization.<\/p>\n
Daniel remained calm.<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Brooks, did you ever accuse Elaine Porter of stealing from the company?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you discover discrepancies in company records she handled?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were accounting issues.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCaused by whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe never established that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy did Ms. Porter leave?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe resigned.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you ask her to resign?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI may have suggested it was best.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPerformance concerns.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel paused.<\/p>\n
Then came the question that changed Patricia\u2019s posture.<\/p>\n
\u201cHave you spoken to Elaine Porter within the last twelve months?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s fingers stopped moving.<\/p>\n
Until then she had been turning a pen slowly between them.<\/p>\n
Now the pen lay still.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney glanced at her.<\/p>\n
Daniel leaned back.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is a yes-or-no question.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI speak to many people.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHave you spoken to Elaine Porter within the last year?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia stared at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse quickened.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many times?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMore than five?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMore than ten?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t count my calls.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did you last speak to her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel opened another folder.<\/p>\n
\u201cWould seeing your phone records help?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
Not much.<\/p>\n
But enough.<\/p>\n
Daniel noticed.<\/p>\n
So did I.<\/p>\n
He placed a page on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese records show forty-three calls between your number and Elaine Porter\u2019s over six months.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian\u2019s mother went completely still.<\/p>\n
Forty-three.<\/p>\n
Not an old acquaintance.<\/p>\n
Not someone from the distant past.<\/p>\n
Forty-three calls.<\/p>\n
Daniel tapped the page.<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Brooks, why were you speaking with a woman you just testified was neither your friend nor someone you regularly dealt with?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia looked toward her attorney.<\/p>\n
He whispered something.<\/p>\n
Then she faced Daniel.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe needed help.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMoney.\u201d<\/p>\n
A strange chill moved through me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind of help?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLoans.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you give her money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCash?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much altogether?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid any of that money come from the sixty-one thousand dollars stolen from Angela and Brian\u2019s account?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s chair creaked as she shifted.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you instruct Elaine Porter to impersonate Angela Brooks?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you provide her with Angela\u2019s identification?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you give her Angela\u2019s grandmother\u2019s emerald ring?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Each answer came faster.<\/p>\n
Too fast.<\/p>\n
Daniel let the silence sit.<\/p>\n
Then he asked, \u201cHave you ever been inside Angela and Brian\u2019s bedroom when Angela was not present?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s face drained of color.<\/p>\n
And for the first time since this nightmare began, I saw genuine fear in her eyes.<\/p>\n
The blonde woman stood so abruptly that the bench scraped against the courtroom floor. Every head turned. She made it two steps toward the doors before the bailiff moved into … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9865,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9870","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9870","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9870"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9870\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9890,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9870\/revisions\/9890"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}