Chapter 9 - WHEN THE DAMAGE REACHED HIS OFFICE
Mark's employer did not fire him immediately.
They placed him on administrative leave and began an internal review.
That distinction mattered.
No one had yet proven which systems he'd used improperly.
But the review uncovered enough to widen everything.
Mark had searched Dad's property through databases available to loan officers.
He had created draft files under a colleague's credentials after his own access was restricted for an unrelated compliance issue.
And he had communicated with an outside title processor using his personal email.
The company notified its insurer and compliance counsel.
That was when I learned about Allison Price.
She wasn't a mistress.
She was a closing coordinator Mark had known for years.
Detective Bennett did not tell me Allison was guilty of anything.
She told me Allison had voluntarily spoken with investigators.
According to Allison, Mark had approached her with what he described as an unusual family loan.
His elderly father-in-law wanted cash but was embarrassed to discuss it with his daughters.
Allison told him she needed direct borrower verification.
Mark said Dad had medical appointments and might be difficult to reach.
Then Mark made the detail sound harmless.
“If he seems foggy afterward, that's just sedation.”
My stomach turned.
Allison refused to close the file without direct verification.
So Mark moved it elsewhere.
That explained why several different company names appeared in the SUV.
He had been shopping for a process that asked fewer questions.
Then Dad told me something I hadn't known.
Mark visited him Wednesday night.
Two days before the appointment.
“He brought forms.”
“What forms?”
“I didn't read all of them.”
Dad looked embarrassed.
“He said they were beneficiary updates for the insurance paperwork.”
“Did you sign?”
“One page.”
My chest tightened.
Jim immediately asked for a description.
Dad couldn't remember the heading.
He did remember Mark covering the lower half of the page with another sheet while pointing to the signature line.
That didn't prove which document Dad signed.
But it gave Mark something valuable.
A fresh authentic signature sample.
By Tuesday afternoon, handwriting review was being discussed.
Then Allison provided investigators with an email Mark had sent Thursday.
Tomorrow is ideal. He's tied up medically most of the afternoon, and Sarah will be with him.
Ideal.
Not convenient.
Ideal.
I thought of Mark's shrug in our kitchen.
Not my problem.
He had known exactly where Dad needed to be.
He had known exactly where I would be.
May you like
And for the first time, I understood that the hospital appointment wasn't an inconvenience that happened to collide with Mark's scheme.
It was part of the schedule.
