Chapter 4 - The Threat in the Night
The drive back from the bank was spent in intense silence. In Callie’s canvas bag sat copies of the trust documents, the ledgers detailing Joel’s embezzlement, and the micro-cassette tape.
Arthur Vance had promised to retain the originals in the bank’s high-security vault while contacting the state financial crimes division and a trusted probate attorney, Kenneth Boyd. But Callie knew that as soon as Joel realized the bank was asking questions, he would panic.
When they pulled up to her apartment building, Callie noticed a dark silver pickup truck idling across the street.
It was Joel’s truck.
Callie’s chest tightened. She quickly helped Geneva out of the car, guiding her through the front entrance and up the stairs as fast as the old woman’s frail legs could manage.
Inside the safety of her apartment, Callie double-locked the deadbolt and dragged a heavy wooden chair under the door handle.
Ten minutes later, a heavy, violent pounding rattled the door frame.
"Callie! Open the damn door!"
It was Joel’s voice, rough and slurred with booze.
Geneva flinched, pulling her knees up on the sofa and covering her ears. "The loud man... he’s back. He wants the papers."
"Shh, Grandma, it’s okay," Callie whispered, reaching into her pocket for her phone.
"I know where you went today, Callie!" Joel shouted through the wood, slamming his fist against the paneling. "Arthur Vance called my attorney! You think you're smart? You think some old senile woman’s ramblings are going to stand up in court?"
Dakota’s voice rang out from the hallway next. "Callie, be reasonable! We sold the house to pay off debts that were going to bankrupt the family anyway! You’re ruining everything over a woman who won't even remember your name next month!"
Callie walked up to the door, her phone already dialing 911. Her voice was ice-cold.
"I’m standing inside this apartment with 911 on the line, Joel. I know about the offshore accounts in Nevis. I know about the three million dollars you stole from Grandfather’s trust. And I have the original 2012 trust document."
The pounding instantly stopped.
A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the hallway.
Through the peephole, Callie saw Joel take a step back, his face completely drained of color. Dakota looked at him in absolute terror, her hands trembling as she grabbed his arm.
"You... you don't know what you're talking about," Joel stammered, his booming confidence entirely vanishing.
"The police are on their way," Callie lied smoothly, keeping her tone deadpan. "I suggest you leave before they arrive."
Joel glared at the door with pure hatred. "This isn't over, Callie. You don't have the money to fight us in court. You’re a baker living in a rented rat hole. By next week, you’ll be on the street with her."
He turned and stormed down the carpeted hallway, Dakota trailing behind him in her high heels.
Callie leaned her head against the cool wood of the door, her heart hammering wildly against her ribs. She looked across the living room at Geneva, who was watching her with big, wide eyes.
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Joel was right about one thing: Callie had less than eight hundred dollars in her bank account. A high-stakes legal battle against her uncle’s corporate lawyers would cost tens of thousands of dollars.
She was going to need help. And she was going to need it before Joel found a way to make her grandmother disappear for good.
