{"id":11202,"date":"2026-09-30T22:04:55","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T22:04:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/?p=11202"},"modified":"2026-09-30T22:04:55","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T22:04:55","slug":"part-15-arthurs-former-accountant-showed-us-the-papers-roy-planned-to-file-friday-including-a-signature-that-could-not-have-been-his-fathers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/?p=11202","title":{"rendered":"PART 15 \u2013 Arthur\u2019s Former Accountant Showed Us the Papers Roy Planned to File Friday, Including a Signature That Could Not Have Been His Father\u2019s"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Elaine Porter\u2019s office occupied the second floor above a pharmacy downtown.<\/p>\n<p>She had been Arthur\u2019s accountant for nearly eighteen years, ending only when she reduced her practice after her husband became ill. Sandra remembered her as the woman who brought chocolate-covered pretzels every Christmas and always gave the children crisp five-dollar bills inside birthday cards.<\/p>\n<p>The woman who met us now looked nothing like a sentimental memory.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine was seventy, narrow-faced, silver-haired, and precise in every movement.<\/p>\n<p>She shook Officer Bennett\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n<p>She nodded to Sandra.<\/p>\n<p>Then she looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHelen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve met?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cArthur showed me photographs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That hurt unexpectedly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat photographs?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTrips. Garden. Your wedding.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra looked down.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine noticed.<\/p>\n<p>She did not apologize.<\/p>\n<p>We sat around a small conference table.<\/p>\n<p>Melissa had stayed at the house.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Katz joined us by phone.<\/p>\n<p>Bennett began with Roy\u2019s Friday appointment.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine folded her hands.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe scheduled it before Arthur died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I felt a chill.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow long before?\u201d Bennett asked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say he needed?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAssistance transferring an investment account after his father\u2019s death.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe scheduled an inheritance meeting while Dad was alive?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDidn\u2019t that seem strange?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI asked whether Arthur had instructed him to contact me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRoy said yes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked toward Sandra.<\/p>\n<p>Another invisible conversation between father and son that existed only because Roy claimed it did.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI called Arthur.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That separated her from Peter immediately.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d Bennett asked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said, and I am quoting as closely as I can, \u2018Roy is planning another funeral before I have had the courtesy to attend my own.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite everything, Sandra almost smiled.<\/p>\n<p>So did I.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine\u2019s mouth softened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe told me not to cancel Roy\u2019s appointment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe wanted to know what Roy would bring.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Arthur again.<\/p>\n<p>Let the lie complete itself.<\/p>\n<p>Then document it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did Roy bring?\u201d Bennett asked.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine stood.<\/p>\n<p>She returned with a folder.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI scanned everything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Inside was an account-transfer form.<\/p>\n<p>A brokerage account.<\/p>\n<p>Owner: Arthur Samuel Mercer.<\/p>\n<p>Proposed successor owner: Roy Mercer.<\/p>\n<p>The account was not one I recognized.<\/p>\n<p>The balance shown on the statement was substantial.<\/p>\n<p>Not several hundred thousand.<\/p>\n<p>More.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDad had that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt originated from an investment Margaret made decades ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The hidden account.<\/p>\n<p>The one Roy had been searching for.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Sandra have any interest in it?\u201d Bennett asked.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked toward her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEventually.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe account was originally designated for both children upon Arthur\u2019s death.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOriginally?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cArthur changed the beneficiary arrangement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter Roy accessed the safe-deposit box.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Again.<\/p>\n<p>Every time Roy took, Arthur moved something farther away.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did Roy bring Friday?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine slid another page forward.<\/p>\n<p>A beneficiary designation.<\/p>\n<p>Old.<\/p>\n<p>Very old.<\/p>\n<p>Roy and Sandra equal.<\/p>\n<p>Then a second document.<\/p>\n<p>More recent.<\/p>\n<p>Roy sole controlling beneficiary.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her chair scraped.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat isn\u2019t right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Arthur never signed it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At the bottom of the page was Arthur\u2019s name.<\/p>\n<p>Or something pretending to be it.<\/p>\n<p>I had seen his handwriting for nine years.<\/p>\n<p>The shape was close.<\/p>\n<p>The capital A almost correct.<\/p>\n<p>But the final r in Mercer rose too high.<\/p>\n<p>Arthur\u2019s hand had shaken near the end of his life, but this signature was oddly smooth.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat isn\u2019t his.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine said, \u201cThat was my conclusion as well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bennett leaned closer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Roy present this to you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe morning Arthur was buried.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My stomach dropped.<\/p>\n<p>Not Friday.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier.<\/p>\n<p>Roy had taken forged paperwork to Elaine on funeral morning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d Bennett asked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat Arthur had completed it before entering hospice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you tell him you doubted the signature?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cArthur had asked me to let Roy proceed far enough that we could document what he intended.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bennett sat back.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo Arthur anticipated this exact document?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot this one. Something like it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra looked sick.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened at the appointment?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI told Roy additional verification would be required.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOriginal death certificate. Current estate documents. Brokerage confirmation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhich he didn\u2019t have.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCorrect.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat was Friday\u2019s appointment for?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said he would bring everything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I understood.<\/p>\n<p>Funeral Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p>Thursday pressure on me.<\/p>\n<p>Friday morning Elaine.<\/p>\n<p>Friday ten o\u2019clock Katz.<\/p>\n<p>Roy wanted to reach the account before Mr. Katz\u2019s meeting clarified the current estate plan.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf Helen missed Katz Friday, would that help Roy?\u201d Bennett asked.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Katz answered through the speaker.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt would not legally revive invalid documents.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut practically?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt could delay notice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd delay was what Roy needed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra looked at the forged signature.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow much could he have taken?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDepending on the transfer process, potentially all of it eventually.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine named the account value.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>It was enough to solve Roy\u2019s debts several times over.<\/p>\n<p>Enough to explain desperation.<\/p>\n<p>Enough to make Hawthorne Lane only one part of what he wanted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe told me Dad left us almost nothing,\u201d Sandra whispered.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked confused.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cArthur intended substantial assets to benefit both families.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot directly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause he didn\u2019t trust us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine\u2019s expression softened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe trusted you differently.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra almost laughed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is a polite way to say it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was his accountant for years. Arthur rarely changed a structure impulsively.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe thought we were stealing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine did not answer.<\/p>\n<p>Bennett returned to the forged form.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere did Roy get this template?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWas the account number accurate?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWould it have appeared in the old will?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTax records?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSafe-deposit documents?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Peter had said Roy learned about the account from an old tax paper.<\/p>\n<p>That part might have been true.<\/p>\n<p>Bennett asked, \u201cWho could prepare something like this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnyone with a copy of the brokerage form.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWould Peter Lang have access?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine hesitated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe worked with Arthur\u2019s company years ago. Not to this personal account.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat about Roy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot legitimately.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra stared at the signature.<\/p>\n<p>Then suddenly said, \u201cI\u2019ve seen that handwriting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Everyone turned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere?\u201d Bennett asked.<\/p>\n<p>She leaned over the page.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat numbers?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe account number written at the top.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked.<\/p>\n<p>Most of the form was typed.<\/p>\n<p>One identification number had been handwritten.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra touched the page without quite making contact.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s not Roy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhose?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked frightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeter.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bennett sat straighter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re certain?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen why do you think that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChristmas cards.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I remembered Sandra mentioning Peter as Uncle Pete.<\/p>\n<p>Decades of cards.<\/p>\n<p>Notes.<\/p>\n<p>Family gatherings.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe writes sevens like that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She pointed.<\/p>\n<p>A horizontal line through the seven.<\/p>\n<p>Not unusual.<\/p>\n<p>Then another feature.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd his twos curl backward at the bottom.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked closer.<\/p>\n<p>Bennett photographed the writing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ll compare.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra whispered, \u201cPeter helped make this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Possibly.<\/p>\n<p>Not proved.<\/p>\n<p>But the line between Peter as reluctant helper and active participant grew darker.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine opened another folder.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is more.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I almost laughed from exhaustion.<\/p>\n<p>There was always more.<\/p>\n<p>She produced email printouts.<\/p>\n<p>Roy had contacted her repeatedly during Arthur\u2019s final month.<\/p>\n<p>He asked about probate timelines.<\/p>\n<p>Beneficiary changes.<\/p>\n<p>Whether a handwritten statement could override a formal designation.<\/p>\n<p>Whether a spouse automatically controlled accounts.<\/p>\n<p>Whether a death certificate was available immediately after burial.<\/p>\n<p>The questions were clinical.<\/p>\n<p>Practical.<\/p>\n<p>Not the questions of a grieving son.<\/p>\n<p>Bennett asked, \u201cDid you answer?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGenerally.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Arthur instructed me to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDad set a trap.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine considered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI would say he allowed Roy to reveal his intentions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That was more accurate.<\/p>\n<p>Arthur had not created Roy\u2019s choices.<\/p>\n<p>He had stopped preventing them.<\/p>\n<p>Another email caught my attention.<\/p>\n<p>Roy wrote:<\/p>\n<p>If Helen is not present at the first estate conference, can distributions still proceed?<\/p>\n<p>Elaine replied:<\/p>\n<p>Depends on the governing documents.<\/p>\n<p>Roy:<\/p>\n<p>Assume she delays or refuses to participate.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine:<\/p>\n<p>Her participation may not be required for assets where she has no interest.<\/p>\n<p>Roy:<\/p>\n<p>Good.<\/p>\n<p>My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n<p>He had been planning around my absence.<\/p>\n<p>Not merely hoping for it.<\/p>\n<p>Another email:<\/p>\n<p>What if she cannot be reached for several days?<\/p>\n<p>Bennett read it twice.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra whispered, \u201cWhy several days?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nobody answered.<\/p>\n<p>I thought of the flat tire.<\/p>\n<p>My keys.<\/p>\n<p>Roy asking whether I left Arthur alone overnight.<\/p>\n<p>Peter saying Roy planned to remove me before Arthur died.<\/p>\n<p>A darker possibility approached.<\/p>\n<p>I did not want to name it.<\/p>\n<p>Bennett did.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Roy ever discuss Helen traveling after Arthur\u2019s death?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said she might visit her sister.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy sister lives in Oregon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWere you planning to go?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you tell Roy anything about Oregon?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot recently.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said Helen would probably leave town after the funeral.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My skin prickled.<\/p>\n<p>Roy had constructed another fictional plan for me.<\/p>\n<p>Just like he had constructed Arthur\u2019s agreements.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen did he say this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbout ten days before Arthur died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bennett wrote it down.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid he say how she would travel?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid he ask anything about joint accounts, power of attorney, or access if Helen was away?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked through notes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She found the entry.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe asked whether a temporary absence affected occupancy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My hands went cold.<\/p>\n<p>Arthur\u2019s trust had not yet been revealed.<\/p>\n<p>Roy apparently suspected something.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow would he know occupancy mattered?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Katz answered through the speaker.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe shouldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCould Peter know?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot from me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCould Roy have found drafts?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Katz paused.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOnly if he accessed Arthur\u2019s private papers or communications.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The break-in happened after Arthur died.<\/p>\n<p>But Roy had searched before.<\/p>\n<p>Safe-deposit box.<\/p>\n<p>Study.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps more.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked toward Sandra.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe once asked me whether Arthur had created a life estate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSix months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Before the final trust.<\/p>\n<p>Arthur may have been considering an earlier version.<\/p>\n<p>Roy was watching.<\/p>\n<p>Always watching.<\/p>\n<p>Bennett took the forged document into evidence with Elaine\u2019s cooperation.<\/p>\n<p>Then he asked one final question.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Roy ever bring another person to an appointment?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked toward the calendar.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeter.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She gave the date.<\/p>\n<p>January eighteenth.<\/p>\n<p>The day after the battery cable incident.<\/p>\n<p>My chest tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did they discuss?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine opened her notes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cArthur\u2019s investment account.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sandra stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTogether?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Peter know Roy didn\u2019t own it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbsolutely.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bennett looked at the handwritten account number again.<\/p>\n<p>Peter was becoming harder to place outside the center.<\/p>\n<p>When we left Elaine\u2019s office, Sandra remained quiet all the way downstairs.<\/p>\n<p>On the sidewalk, she stopped.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m going to ask you something and you can tell me no.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I waited.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan I stay at the house tonight?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The request surprised me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her face tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t want to be alone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That I understood.<\/p>\n<p>Then she added, \u201cAnd I don\u2019t know what Roy might do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There it was.<\/p>\n<p>Fear had finally crossed the family line.<\/p>\n<p>Her brother was no longer merely someone she thought had behaved badly.<\/p>\n<p>She was afraid of him.<\/p>\n<p>I looked toward Bennett.<\/p>\n<p>He did not tell me what to do.<\/p>\n<p>Good.<\/p>\n<p>Arthur had spent his final months ensuring nobody made decisions for me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra exhaled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut one condition.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo searching.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her face folded with shame.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI deserve that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not trying to punish you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>We drove separately toward Hawthorne Lane.<\/p>\n<p>I arrived first.<\/p>\n<p>The temporary repair on the kitchen door looked ugly but solid.<\/p>\n<p>I put water on for tea.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra arrived ten minutes later carrying an overnight bag.<\/p>\n<p>Before she entered, she stood on the porch.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo I knock now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The question hurt.<\/p>\n<p>I opened the door wider.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou should.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She nodded.<\/p>\n<p>Then stepped inside.<\/p>\n<p>At eight forty-three that evening, while we sat at Arthur\u2019s kitchen table with two untouched cups of tea, somebody knocked.<\/p>\n<p>Three hard knocks.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra\u2019s face drained.<\/p>\n<p>I looked through the curtain.<\/p>\n<p>Roy stood outside.<\/p>\n<p>His truck was parked at the curb.<\/p>\n<p>He held a folder under one arm.<\/p>\n<p>Sandra whispered, \u201cDon\u2019t open it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Roy knocked again.<\/p>\n<p>Then raised the folder to the window.<\/p>\n<p>Through the glass, I could see one page.<\/p>\n<p>A court filing.<\/p>\n<p>My name at the top.<\/p>\n<p>Roy had moved faster than Bennett.<\/p>\n<p>He had filed something against me.<\/p>\n<p>And whatever he was carrying, he wanted me to see it before morning.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/?p=11203\">Click here to continue reading: PART 16: Roy Came to My Door With a Court Petition Calling Me a Manipulator, but Arthur Had Prepared for That Accusation Nearly a Year Earlier<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Elaine Porter\u2019s office occupied the second floor above a pharmacy downtown. 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