I closed the folder.
“Why?” I asked.
“Because you’re upset.”
“I am extremely calm.”
“That makes it worse.”
I looked toward the door as Lorraine pounded again.
“Did you tell your mother you bought this apartment for her?”
Daniel hesitated.
“I told her we were working something out.”
“She moved in.”
“She was staying there temporarily.”
“She replaced my photographs.”
“Mom likes to decorate.”
“She threatened to have me arrested.”
“You two have never gotten along.”
Every answer slid sideways.
So I stopped asking questions he could dodge.
“Did I sign a deed transferring Unit 12B to you?”
“No.”
The answer came too quickly.
I stared at the folder.
“Then why am I holding one?”
Daniel went silent.
Outside, Lorraine stopped pounding.
The sudden quiet was almost worse.
“Claire,” Daniel finally said, his voice lower, “there were documents prepared during a discussion about restructuring our assets.
They weren’t supposed to be used until we both agreed.”
“I never had that discussion.”
“You knew we had financial issues.”
“Your financial issues.”
He didn’t answer.
I had spent the last year watching Daniel become increasingly secretive about money.
He made good money, but somehow he was always transferring funds, delaying bills, talking about investments that would pay off later.
Whenever I asked for details, he told me not to worry.
I had started worrying anyway.
That was one reason we had separated.
Now I opened the folder again.
Behind the supposed transfer document were emails Daniel had printed for reasons I couldn’t understand.
One message was from Lorraine.
I could see only part of it before my vision sharpened around one sentence.
Once Claire is out of the way, I can finally move in properly.
Daniel’s printed response was underneath.
Just wait until everything clears.
My fingers tightened on the paper.
“What was supposed to clear?” I asked.
Daniel did not ask what I meant.
Instead he said, “I’m coming over.”
“No.”
“We are still married.”
“You are not coming inside.”
“Claire—”
I hung up.
Then I called the building manager.
He returned with security while Lorraine was still hovering near the elevators.
I showed him only enough to explain that there might be fraudulent paperwork involving my unit and asked whether Daniel had submitted anything to the building.
The manager’s expression changed.
