For several seconds, Linda Mercer and I simply stared at one another.<\/p>\n
Rain had begun again outside.<\/p>\n
Tiny drops shone on the shoulders of her coat.<\/p>\n
Her employee badge hung from a blue cord around her neck, exactly as it had when she sat across from me in the benefits office.<\/p>\n
The same woman who had shown me forged documents was now standing on my porch after announcing that she needed to discuss the account with Derek before I discovered it.<\/p>\n
Behind me, Emily asked, \u201cMom, who is she?\u201d<\/p>\n
I did not look away from Linda.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the benefits officer I met Friday.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda\u2019s gaze shifted past my shoulder.<\/p>\n
She saw the blue folder.<\/p>\n
Then the photograph.<\/p>\n
Her face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cDerek,\u201d she whispered. \u201cWhat did you do?\u201d<\/p>\n
He laughed.<\/p>\n
There was no humor in it.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t pretend.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda took a step backward.<\/p>\n
\u201cI should leave.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou came here to discuss an account. Come discuss it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a family issue.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou signed my name. That makes it mine.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily approached holding the photograph.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you having an affair with my husband?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda looked at Derek.<\/p>\n
Only once.<\/p>\n
That was enough.<\/p>\n
Emily pressed the photograph against his chest.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEmily\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek looked toward the children.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t supposed to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not a length of time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda folded her arms.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou two already had problems.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily turned slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou came into my house while I was working.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda said nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy daughter calls you Auntie.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never wanted the children involved.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou walked through their home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDerek said you knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cKnew what? That he had another woman or that the two of you were stealing with my mother\u2019s identity?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not steal from Margaret.\u201d<\/p>\n
I picked up the yellow sticky note she had written Friday.<\/p>\n
Then I placed it beside one of the receipts from the second stack.<\/p>\n
The handwriting was unmistakable now.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wrote both.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda\u2019s eyes moved between them.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat proves nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt proves enough to begin asking better questions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek headed toward the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m leaving.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily blocked him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can leave,\u201d I said. \u201cThe folder stays.\u201d<\/p>\n
His eyes dropped toward it.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy personal documents are inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy driver\u2019s license is inside. My Social Security number is inside. My forged signature is inside. Choose another argument.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda entered and shut the door.<\/p>\n
Something changed in her as soon as she realized escape was no longer simple.<\/p>\n
Her frightened expression hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone needs to calm down.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d Emily said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf this gets reported, it won\u2019t affect only Derek.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs that supposed to scare me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe claims were submitted through your employee profile.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never submitted them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour username did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy husband knew my password.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda tilted her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you prove that?\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek said sharply, \u201cLinda, stop.\u201d<\/p>\n
She ignored him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour mother\u2019s identification is attached to the claims. Emily\u2019s employee account approved them. Derek handled the money. On paper, all of you are connected.\u201d<\/p>\n
The baby began crying in the hallway.<\/p>\n
My granddaughter appeared carrying him awkwardly against her side.<\/p>\n
I immediately went to them.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
I called Mrs. Patterson next door.<\/p>\n
She had known me fifteen years.<\/p>\n
She heard my voice and asked only one question.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you need me to take the children?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
She arrived within minutes.<\/p>\n
My granddaughter clung to her rabbit.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs Mommy coming?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLater.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs Daddy mad?\u201d<\/p>\n
I kissed her forehead.<\/p>\n
\u201cNone of this is because of you.\u201d<\/p>\n
After Mrs. Patterson took them next door, I locked the door.<\/p>\n
Then I placed my phone on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am recording from now on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek scoffed.<\/p>\n
Linda looked ill.<\/p>\n
\u201cTurn that off.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll explain if you stop recording.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen you can choose not to explain.\u201d<\/p>\n
I began collecting the documents.<\/p>\n
Linda watched me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPreparing what I\u2019m taking to investigators.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWait.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda ignored him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has children,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have a daughter.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a career.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you\u2019re willing to destroy all of that?\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I am refusing to help you hide what already damaged it.\u201d<\/p>\n
She gripped the chair.<\/p>\n
Derek spoke quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cLinda.\u201d<\/p>\n
She turned on him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told me the originals were gone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat originals?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
I waited.<\/p>\n
Finally she sat.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first year, Derek submitted the forms himself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek cursed under his breath.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe signatures were bad,\u201d Linda continued. \u201cAn auditor noticed they weren\u2019t consistent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you reported them?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou corrected them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to prevent a larger problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou forged them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was protecting my department.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were protecting yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek struck the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou took half.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda snapped her head toward him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou promised never to say that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you promised to handle the audit.\u201d<\/p>\n
I leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat audit?\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Then I understood why Linda had been so helpful on Friday.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew investigators were coming.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked down.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is why you gave me the copies.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wanted me to confront Derek.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou gave me the account digits so I would find his secret account. You hoped he would panic, destroy evidence, repay something, and become the obvious culprit.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda\u2019s shoulders sagged.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou did not expect me to recognize two different writers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes filled.<\/p>\n
For the first time that evening, she looked ashamed.<\/p>\n
\u201cCompliance contacted me Thursday.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily sat.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are reviewing dependent-care reimbursements from several years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRepeated provider information. Similar addresses. Patterns.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda did not answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas I the only caregiver identity you used?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily whispered, \u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda looked toward Derek.<\/p>\n
He stared at the floor.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeven families were flagged.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many provider signatures did you personally forge?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFour.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of the women I knew.<\/p>\n
Grandmothers waiting outside school.<\/p>\n
Retired women keeping children because their daughters or sons could not afford full-time care.<\/p>\n
Women who believed they were helping.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did you choose them?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda began crying.<\/p>\n
\u201cDerek found their information.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily turned toward her husband.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cSchool forms.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek had volunteered on the parent committee.<\/p>\n
He had helped organize field trips.<\/p>\n
He had access to emergency contacts and approved pickup information.<\/p>\n
Names.<\/p>\n
Addresses.<\/p>\n
Telephone numbers.<\/p>\n
Sometimes identification copies.<\/p>\n
I felt physically cold.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou stole identities from grandparents at your children\u2019s school.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re making it sound worse.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cExplain the better version.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw a benefit nobody was using.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe benefit reimburses actual expenses.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were providing care.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd not being paid.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one was hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked toward the window of Mrs. Patterson\u2019s house.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou used people\u2019s Social Security numbers to report income they never received.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda covered her face.<\/p>\n
That reaction told me something else.<\/p>\n
\u201cTaxes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou reported taxable payments under our names.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily reopened the blue folder.<\/p>\n
Behind the bank statement she found several tax documents.<\/p>\n
Four names.<\/p>\n
Mine first.<\/p>\n
I recognized the others.<\/p>\n
One woman was seventy-four.<\/p>\n
Another had recently become a widow.<\/p>\n
A third depended on disability payments.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis could affect their taxes and benefits.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda whispered, \u201cWe planned to correct everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter the property started producing income.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily held up the photograph.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat property?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda looked at Derek.<\/p>\n
He shook his head.<\/p>\n
She laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou still think silence is saving you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLinda.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe house.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily looked at the photograph.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat house?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda pointed toward the building visible behind her red car.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe bought it as a rental.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the stolen money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe deposit came from the account.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose names are on the deed?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda stopped talking.<\/p>\n
Derek moved.<\/p>\n
He grabbed the folder.<\/p>\n
Emily caught his shirt.<\/p>\n
He pulled free and ran through the kitchen.<\/p>\n
I followed.<\/p>\n
He burst through my back door and headed toward the metal fire pit near the garden.<\/p>\n
He dropped the folder into it.<\/p>\n
Then he pulled a lighter from his pocket.<\/p>\n
I grabbed the watering can beside the tomatoes.<\/p>\n
The first flame touched a corner of paper.<\/p>\n
I emptied the entire can.<\/p>\n
Water crashed over the folder.<\/p>\n
Paper collapsed into gray pulp.<\/p>\n
Derek stared at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou ruined it.\u201d<\/p>\n
I almost laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were trying to burn it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily stood behind us with her phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cI called the police.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou called the police on me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI called them because someone stole my mother\u2019s identity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sirens sounded in the distance.<\/p>\n
Linda ran toward her car.<\/p>\n
Before she reached it, a gray sedan entered my driveway and stopped behind her.<\/p>\n
Two people stepped out.<\/p>\n
Both wore dark jackets.<\/p>\n
One held up identification.<\/p>\n
\u201cLinda Mercer?\u201d<\/p>\n
She froze.<\/p>\n
The second person walked toward Derek.<\/p>\n
\u201cStay where you are.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou called investigators already?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI filed the report Friday.\u201d<\/p>\n
His expression went slack.<\/p>\n
That was when I understood how completely he had underestimated me.<\/p>\n
While he believed I was cooking Sunday dinner, I had been freezing credit files, copying documents, reporting accounts, and preserving evidence.<\/p>\n
An investigator collected the wet folder.<\/p>\n
Linda began talking almost immediately.<\/p>\n
Derek requested an attorney.<\/p>\n
After they left, Emily sat on my back steps.<\/p>\n
The rain had stopped.<\/p>\n
Water dripped from the tomato cages.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
I sat beside her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI should have known.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe worked hard so you wouldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI signed something.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we enrolled in the dependent-care program. Years ago. Derek told me we might qualify because you watched the baby.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you sign?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA form listing you as caregiver.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you say I was paid?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I left that blank.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Derek completed it afterward.\u201d<\/p>\n
She nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cI trusted him.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked toward the wet garden.<\/p>\n
Trust is not foolish merely because someone abuses it.<\/p>\n
But after it is broken, the person who broke it often tries to convince you that trusting was the original mistake.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou made one mistake,\u201d I told her. \u201cWhat you do after discovering it matters more.\u201d<\/p>\n
She leaned against my shoulder.<\/p>\n
My phone rang.<\/p>\n
The fraud investigator.<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Wallace, we located the property Linda mentioned.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a complication.\u201d<\/p>\n
I sat straighter.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe house was purchased fourteen months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the benefit money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe down payment came from the same account.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose name is on the deed?\u201d<\/p>\n
He hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cYours.\u201d<\/p>\n
For a moment I could not speak.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe mortgage, insurance policy, and title documents all use your identity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily covered her mouth.<\/p>\n
The investigator continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is more.\u201d<\/p>\n
I switched to speaker.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe property burned three weeks ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Emily.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas anyone hurt?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re checking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does this have to do with the fraud?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe insurance carrier issued a payout yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo hundred eighty thousand dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was deposited into an account opened under Mrs. Wallace\u2019s identity.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart began pounding.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe account was emptied today.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
The investigator paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cLess than an hour before your family sat down for Sunday dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n
For several seconds, Linda Mercer and I simply stared at one another. Rain had begun again outside. Tiny drops shone on the shoulders of her coat. Her employee badge hung … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6349,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feel-one-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6352"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6382,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6352\/revisions\/6382"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6349"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}