He placed the leather folder on the table but kept one hand resting on it.
THOMAS: "I should have spoken sooner."
Richard looked at him.
RICHARD: "You were asked several times to provide the complete records."
THOMAS: "I know."
ISABELLA: "Why didn't you?"
Thomas looked down.
THOMAS: "Because I was told that the matter had already been settled."
ISABELLA: "By whom?"
Thomas hesitated.
RICHARD: "Thomas, this is the opportunity to provide an accurate account. You should not leave out anything important."
Thomas opened the leather folder.
Inside were several photocopies and a handwritten note.
THOMAS: "I was responsible for processing certain administrative instructions. I did not have authority to approve major transfers, but I was asked to prepare documents and send them to the relevant institutions."
ISABELLA: "Who asked you?"
Thomas looked toward Richard.
Then he looked back at Isabella.
THOMAS: "Your mother."
Isabella remained still.
THOMAS: "At first, the instructions concerned ordinary household expenses and maintenance. I processed them because they appeared to fall within her authority. But later, the instructions became different."
ISABELLA: "Different how?"
THOMAS: "There were requests to move money from the protected fund into accounts connected to Montgomery Strategic Holdings."
ISABELLA: "Did you question them?"
THOMAS: "Yes. I asked whether the required approval had been obtained."
RICHARD: "And what were you told?"
Thomas took a breath.
THOMAS: "I was told that Frank had already agreed and that the paperwork would follow."
Isabella looked at him.
ISABELLA: "Did you ever speak to my father about it?"
THOMAS: "Once."
ISABELLA: "What did he say?"
Thomas's expression changed.
THOMAS: "He told me not to release any more money until he had reviewed the documents himself."
Isabella leaned forward.
ISABELLA: "When was that?"
Thomas checked his notes.
THOMAS: "Approximately two weeks before the first major disputed transfer."
Richard immediately looked up.
RICHARD: "Do you have a record of that instruction?"
Thomas nodded.
He removed a handwritten note from the folder.
THOMAS: "I wrote it down at the time. I was worried there might be confusion later."
Isabella took the paper.
The note contained a short instruction in Thomas's handwriting. It stated that Frank had requested a pause on further transfers until the authorization could be verified.
ISABELLA: "Was the money transferred anyway?"
Thomas looked down.
THOMAS: "Yes."
The room became silent.
RICHARD: "Who instructed you to continue?"
Thomas's fingers tightened around the edge of the folder.
THOMAS: "I received another instruction from the estate."
ISABELLA: "From my mother?"
Thomas nodded slowly.
THOMAS: "She told me your father had changed his mind."
ISABELLA: "Did she provide a new signed instruction?"
THOMAS: "A document was sent to the office."
Richard looked at him sharply.
RICHARD: "The disputed authorization?"
THOMAS: "I believe so."
Isabella felt her pulse quicken.
ISABELLA: "Did you see my father's signature on it?"
Thomas hesitated.
THOMAS: "Yes."
ISABELLA: "Did it look like his handwriting?"
Thomas looked at the document in front of him.
THOMAS: "At the time, I did not question it. But after the concerns were raised, I noticed that it looked different from the signatures on the earlier records."
Richard leaned forward.
RICHARD: "Did you keep a copy?"
Thomas nodded.
He reached into the folder and removed another sheet.
THOMAS: "This is the copy I retained."
Richard took it carefully.
The document was similar to the one they had already examined, but there was an additional section at the bottom containing an internal processing note.
RICHARD: "This was not included in the version we received."
THOMAS: "No."
ISABELLA: "What does the note say?"
Richard read it silently before turning the page toward her.
The note referred to an instruction to process the transfer before the end of the month. It also mentioned that further correspondence should be directed through a specific office rather than sent to Frank personally.
Isabella looked at Thomas.
ISABELLA: "Who requested that?"
Thomas swallowed.
THOMAS: "Your brother."
Isabella's eyes moved to Richard.
Richard placed the document beside the earlier authorization.
The pieces were beginning to connect, but they still did not know whether Alexander had acted independently, whether Victoria had instructed him, or whether both had been following a plan they had kept hidden from Frank.
THOMAS: "There is something else."
He opened the folder again.
THOMAS: "The day after I received that instruction, I was asked to prepare a revised copy of the Harbor House transfer."
ISABELLA: "Who asked?"
THOMAS: "Mrs. Montgomery."
ISABELLA: "And what happened to the original?"
Thomas looked at her.
THOMAS: "It was taken back to the estate."
RICHARD: "By whom?"
Thomas paused.
THOMAS: "I was told that Alexander would collect it."
Isabella stared at him.
The missing authorization was likely still somewhere inside the Montgomery estate.
And if the document contained the original signature, the missing pages, or evidence of who had submitted it, it could reveal far more than the financial statements alone.
Thomas lowered his voice.
THOMAS: "I should tell you that your mother was not the only person who wanted the document kept out of the file."