Chapter 6 - The Five-Million-Dollar DeadlineThe moment Gregory shouted into his phone, the kitchen seemed to shrink around us.
My mother was sitting perfectly still.
My father looked as though he'd aged ten years in a single evening.
Renata had stopped crying.
And Gregory was pacing beside the refrigerator, speaking so loudly that nobody had to strain to hear him.
“No, Victor. Listen to me. The closing already happened.”
A pause.
“I don't know!”
Another pause.
“Monday. She said Monday.”
He glanced toward me.
Then his voice dropped.
“We need another way.”
Daniel stood.
“Mr. Shaw, I suggest you end that conversation and speak to an attorney.”
Gregory lowered the phone.
His eyes narrowed.
“You think you're clever, don't you?”
I didn't answer.
“You think because you've got a few million dollars, you're untouchable.”
“Thirty-nine million,” Renata whispered.
Gregory turned on her.
“Would you shut up?”
Dad rose from his chair.
“Don't speak to my daughter that way.”
Gregory laughed bitterly.
“Your daughter? Which one? The one who lied to you for fifteen years or the one who sat on a fortune while you struggled?”
I felt anger rush through me.
But I kept my voice calm.
“The only people who knew about my sale were the buyer, my attorneys, and the professionals involved in closing. I didn't know Mom and Dad had given you money. You did.”
Gregory stared at me.
For once, he had nothing to say.
Renata reached for her handbag.
“Greg, let's go.”
He ignored her.
“Who bought the property?”
“That's confidential until the public announcement.”
“Was it GreenBridge?”
I didn't react.
“Was it Northstar?”
Still nothing.
He took a step toward me.
“Answer me.”
Daniel moved between us.
“Mr. Shaw, the conversation is finished.”
Gregory's jaw worked.
Then he pointed at Renata.
“You told me you had everything handled.”
She flinched.
“I tried.”
“You tried?”
“Gregory, please.”
He slammed his palm against the counter.
“We're finished.”
The words were so harsh that even Dad stepped back.
Gregory grabbed his keys.
As he stormed toward the front door, Renata followed him.
“Greg!”
He spun around.
“No. You stay here. Explain to your precious family why we're about to lose everything.”
The door slammed.
Renata stood in the hallway, staring after him.
Then she slowly turned toward us.
Her face looked different.
The polished confidence was gone.
She looked frightened.
Not embarrassed.
Not angry.
Terrified.
“Fay,” she whispered, “I need your help.”
I stared at her.
For fifteen years, those words had traveled in one direction.
My parents had been asked to help me.
Again and again.
Except I'd never asked.
Now the woman who'd invented all those emergencies was asking me for help herself.
“Help with what?” I asked.
Renata looked at Daniel.
“Can he leave?”
“No.”
She began crying again.
This time, she didn't look theatrical.
She looked desperate.
“We borrowed money.”
“I know.”
“No, you don't understand.”
“Then tell me.”
She sank into a chair.
“Gregory's development project was supposed to make us rich.”
Dad made a strangled sound.
“You already had a beautiful house!”
Renata covered her face.
“You don't understand how much we owed.”
Elaine sat across from her.
“How much?”
Renata hesitated.
“Almost eight million.”
The room went silent.
I had expected five million.
Eight was worse.
Much worse.
“Who do you owe?” Elaine asked.
Renata shook her head.
“Gregory handled most of that.”
“Victor Hale?”
She nodded.
“Partly.”
“And the rest?”
“Private investors.”
Elaine glanced at Daniel.
“Were your parents' transfers recorded as investments?”
Renata whispered, “Not exactly.”
“What does that mean?”
“I used the money to cover payments when the company couldn't meet its obligations.”
Dad gripped the edge of the table.
“You used our retirement savings to pay your debts?”
“I was going to replace everything!”
“When?” he shouted.
“When the development sold!”
“What development?”
Renata stopped speaking.
Elaine waited.
Finally, my sister whispered, “Magnolia Ridge.”
I remembered the name from the financial statements.
“What happened to it?” I asked.
Renata looked down.
“The construction stopped. There were environmental problems and permit delays. We couldn't finish the project.”
“So you lost money.”
She nodded.
“How much?”
“A lot.”
“Renata.”
Her eyes lifted.
“Everything.”
Mom let out a soft cry.
Renata began talking faster.
“Gregory thought we could recover if we acquired land near the new transmission corridor. Victor knew your property was valuable. He said a large company would eventually pay whatever it took.”
My chest tightened.
“And your plan was to take it from me?”
“No!”
I stared at her.
She swallowed.
“We thought we could get an interest in it.”
“By forging documents?”
“I didn't forge anything!”
Daniel spoke quietly.
“Renata, you should consider obtaining independent legal counsel before answering further questions.”
She shook her head.
“I don't need another lawyer. I need Fay to understand.”
“Then stop lying,” I said.
She looked directly at me.
“Gregory said you wouldn't cooperate unless we had leverage.”
I felt sick.
“What leverage?”
“Proof that Mom and Dad had been supporting you.”
I stared at her.
The entire scheme suddenly came into focus.
The false invoices.
The transfers.
The fabricated financial history.
The suspicious ownership documents.
For years, Renata had been building a record that appeared to show my farm survived because of money funneled through her company.
Then, when the land became valuable, Gregory and Victor could claim that their financial contributions entitled them to part of the proceeds.
It didn't make those claims legitimate.
But it could create enough confusion and litigation to pressure a settlement.
My sister had manufactured a history of financial dependence to steal an ownership interest she never earned.
“Was that the plan from the beginning?” I asked.
She shook her head quickly.
“No. At first I was just borrowing from Mom and Dad.”
“Borrowing?”
“I needed money for Gregory's first investment. I was going to pay it back.”
“By telling them I needed emergency medical treatment?”
She looked away.
“Then we lost more money.”
“And you kept lying.”
“Yes.”
“And when you realized my land might be worth millions, you decided you deserved it.”
Renata began crying harder.
“Gregory said it was the only way.”
Dad stood.
“Stop blaming your husband.”
She stared at him.
“You don't understand what he's like.”
“Then explain.”
She looked toward the front door.
For a long moment, she didn't speak.
Then she said, “Victor gave us until Monday.”
“Monday for what?” I asked.
“To produce enough money to satisfy the investors.”
Elaine leaned forward.
“How much are they demanding?”
“Five million immediately. The rest after we sell the remaining assets.”
“And if you don't pay?”
Renata stared at the table.
“They'll foreclose on the properties securing the loans.”
“Which properties?”
Her face crumpled.
“Our house. The office building. Gregory's commercial lots.”
She hesitated.
Then added something that made Dad go pale.
“And the land behind Mom and Dad's house.”
My father slowly sat down.
“What land?”
Renata closed her eyes.
“The back parcel.”
Dad looked at me.
Our parents owned a modest home on two acres.
Behind it lay another six acres Dad had inherited from his parents.
He rented it to a neighbor for hay.
It wasn't valuable compared with my farmland.
But it was part of the family property.
And Dad had always planned to leave it to his grandchildren.
“How could you borrow against my land?” he whispered.
Renata shook her head.
“Dad, I didn't—”
“Answer me!”
She began sobbing.
“Gregory had papers.”
Dad looked devastated.
“I never signed a mortgage on that land.”
Renata said nothing.
Daniel's expression hardened.
“Walter, we need to check the property records immediately.”
I stood.
“Does Gregory know what you've done?”
She lifted her eyes.
Then something unexpected happened.
Renata began shaking so violently that Mom moved toward her.
“I can't do this anymore,” she whispered.
I thought she was talking about the money.
She wasn't.
She opened her handbag and pulled out a folded piece of paper.
Her hands were trembling as she passed it to me.
It was a letter from Gregory.
Dated three days earlier.
Renata, if Fay's land isn't secured before the buyer closes, our only remaining option is to make sure your parents cooperate. They have already signed statements establishing the family's financial support. We will use those records to challenge the transaction.
My eyes moved down the page.
The final paragraph was worse.
If necessary, remind Walter that the back parcel is already tied to our obligations. He'll do what we need when he understands what's at stake.
Dad leaned over my shoulder.
He read the letter.
Then whispered, “He put our property at risk?”
Renata nodded.
“I found out last week.”
“Why didn't you tell us?”
“Because I was afraid.”
“Of what?”
She glanced toward the window.
“Gregory.”
I looked at her.
For the first time, I wondered whether there were two different crimes happening at once.
The fraud Renata had committed against our parents.
And a larger scheme Gregory had constructed around her lies.
I wasn't ready to forgive her.
Not even close.
But the fear in her face was real.
Then my phone rang.
An unknown number.
I answered.
A man's voice spoke calmly.
“Ms. Bennett?”
“Yes.”
“My name is Victor Hale.”
My blood chilled.
“I understand you've been asking questions about my business.”
I glanced at Daniel.
“What do you want?”
“A reasonable conversation.”
“About what?”
“Your family's financial obligations.”
“Those aren't mine.”
He laughed softly.
“That's where we disagree.”
I felt every eye in the kitchen turn toward me.
Victor continued.
“I know about the thirty-nine-million-dollar sale. Congratulations.”
I said nothing.
“Unfortunately, the buyer may soon discover that the transaction has complications.”
“What complications?”
“Nothing that can't be resolved.”
“Meaning?”
“Five million dollars would solve everyone's problems.”
I stared at the wall.
He was demanding money.
Not because he had a legitimate claim.
Because he hoped the threat of litigation would frighten me.
“And if I refuse?” I asked.
Victor's voice remained pleasant.
“Then your parents may discover that they've signed documents with consequences they don't understand.”
My stomach tightened.
Before I could respond, he added:
“And your sister should be very careful about what she tells you. She isn't the only person in that family with something to hide.”
The line went dead.
I lowered my phone.
My father looked terrified.
“What did he say?”
I repeated the conversation.
Renata covered her face.
But Daniel was already reaching for his laptop.
“Fay, save the call details and write down his exact words.”
“Why?”
“Because we may have just moved beyond a questionable business dispute.”
He looked at my sister.
“Renata, I strongly recommend that you stop speaking about these matters without counsel. And nobody in this family should contact Gregory or Victor directly tonight.”
Renata nodded.
Then Dad quietly asked the question that none of us wanted to hear.
“What if Victor was telling the truth?”
I looked at him.
“About what?”
May you like
He swallowed.
“What if I'm the one who signed away our land?”
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