Part 4
Part 4 · 1 min read ·
Even the date beneath it was wrong.
My attorney, Denise Harper, had already sent the company a written dispute. They had agreed not to charge me while investigating who submitted the document.
Ryan had paid a small deposit, and the company had offered him a final chance to pay the remaining balance himself.
He refused.
At 7:05, Aunt Ruth called. Her voice shook.
“Claire, why is Barbara saying you disappeared with twenty-three thousand dollars?”
My stomach tightened.
“What twenty-three thousand?”
“The Christmas contribution fund. We all paid. Barbara said the money covered dinner and a donation to St. Luke’s food pantry.”
I had never heard of a contribution fund.
Ruth forwarded her payment confirmation. Then her daughter sent another. By midnight, I had screenshots from fourteen relatives, each showing payments to an account labeled Walker Holiday Events.
Tessa’s new business.
One cousin included a message from Barbara: “Claire is generously covering all vendor expenses, so your contributions can go toward our family giving project.”
There it was.
They were charging the relatives while spending my money. And this year, after I stopped paying, they needed someone to blame for the missing cash.