Chapter 4 - The Notary’s Shadow
The sun was just beginning to bleed through the horizontal blinds of the police station interview room when Officer Ramirez escorted a sweating, middle-aged man in a rumpled suit into the chair opposite mine.
It was Arthur Pendelton, a local notary public whose office was located three blocks from Evan’s architectural firm.
Pendelton looked terrified. He kept wiping his palms on his trousers, refusing to meet my eyes as the detective locked the door behind him.
“Mr. Pendelton,” Detective Miller said, leaning over the table. “Let’s talk about the corporate resolution you notarized for Vance Holdings on November 14th of last year.”
Pendelton swallowed hard. “I... I followed all standard procedures. Mr. Vance brought the document in. He said his wife was at home recovering from a minor procedure and couldn’t travel, so he brought her pre-signed authorization.”
“You notarized a signature without the principal present?” Miller’s voice dropped into a dangerous register. “That’s a felony, Mr. Pendelton.”
“He had a video!” Pendelton blurted out, shrinking back into his chair. “Mr. Vance showed me a brief video clip on his phone. A woman sitting at a kitchen table, signing a stack of papers, matching the ID he handed me. He said she was immunocompromised and couldn't risk coming out during flu season.”
I leaned forward, the bruising on my neck aching with the movement. “What time of day was that video recorded, Mr. Pendelton?”
The notary blinked, looking at me for the first time. “It... it was around two in the afternoon. Bright sunlight coming through the window.”
I looked at Detective Miller. “On November 14th of last year, I was recovering from emergency appendectomy surgery at Mercy General Hospital. I was heavily sedated in the ICU until four p.m. My medical records will prove I wasn't even in my kitchen.”
Pendelton’s face turned the color of ash. “He... he told me she was home.”
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“He lied to you to cover a federal wire fraud,” Miller said, standing up and resting his hands on the table. “And now you’re an accessory to attempted murder and grand larceny, Arthur. Unless you want to explain to a federal judge why you risked your license for Evan Vance, you’re going to tell us where Diane hid the rest of that two hundred thousand dollars.”
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