Chapter 91 - The Partner Who Opened the Envelope
The man who had opened the envelope was named Elliot Shaw. He had worked with Rebecca’s former consulting firm for less than three years, then left before the company closed. His attorney arranged a meeting with Nora, the accountant, Beatrice, and me.
Dominic came with me but stayed near the door. He had no role in the foundation’s review, and he had made that boundary clear. Still, when Elliot saw him, his shoulders stiffened.
“I didn’t know Mr. Vale would be here,” he said.
“He won’t ask you questions,” Nora replied. “He’s here as my client’s support person.”
Elliot looked at me instead. “I’m sorry this has become a family matter.”
“It became a family matter when someone put my mother’s money beside my name and kept the records from me.”
He lowered his eyes.
Nora placed the access log on the table. It showed that Elliot had opened the archive containing the distribution instructions years after the reserve transfer. He had also opened the folder marked “Claire—beneficiary notice.”
“Why did you access those files?” Nora asked.
“Adrian asked me to confirm whether the old account schedule was complete.”
“Did he say why?”
“He said there was a question about a closing adjustment.”
“Did he tell you the money belonged to Anne’s reserve?”
“He called it a temporary account.”
“Did he tell you Claire was listed as a beneficiary?”
Elliot hesitated. “I saw her name.”
I looked at him. “You saw my name and didn’t contact me?”
“I wasn’t authorized to contact beneficiaries.”
“Who told you that?”
“Adrian.”
Elliot explained that the envelope was already open when he found it in the records room. He had been asked to scan the contents and compare the dates with a ledger schedule. The handwritten note—“Hold pending notice”—was already on the page.
“Did you write it?” Beatrice asked.
“No.”
“Do you know who did?”
“I assumed Rebecca. It looked like her handwriting.”
“Did you ask her?”
“No.”
That answer landed harder than it should have. Another person had seen a question, decided someone else owned it, and moved on.
Nora asked him to identify the exact files he had opened. He named three. One was the distribution instruction. One was my notice record. The third was an invoice from Rebecca’s former company, the same invoice Thomas Pike had preserved.
“Did you see the payment attached to it?” the accountant asked.
“I saw a ledger entry. I didn’t see proof that the work had been completed.”
“Did you ask for proof?”
“Adrian told me not to expand the review.”
I felt my fingers curl against the table. “Why?”
“He said the foundation board was already looking at the account and that an incomplete review would confuse the issue.”
“Was there a complete review?”
“Not while I was there.”
Elliot’s attorney reminded him not to speculate. Nora agreed. She asked whether he had kept any personal copies. Elliot said he had saved the access log because the file system was being decommissioned. He sent it through his lawyer before the meeting.
The log showed that the file had been opened from a user account assigned to Adrian’s office. Elliot had viewed it, but he had not changed or downloaded it. The initials beside the original handwritten note were not his.
“Do you know who had access before you?” Nora asked.
Elliot named two former staff members, then added, “Rebecca had a visitor badge that week.”
I looked at Beatrice. She made no expression.
“Did she come to ask about my allocation?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” Elliot said. “I saw her in the records room, but I don’t know what she was looking for.”
When the meeting ended, Dominic walked with me into the hall.
“Do you think he’s telling the truth?” he asked.
“I think he told us what he remembers. That’s not the same as knowing the whole story.”
At the elevator, Nora caught up with us. The accountant had noticed a discrepancy in the access log. The archive showed a second visitor badge issued that same afternoon.
May you like
It had been assigned to Rebecca.
The file it opened was not in the inventory Elliot had given us.
