Chapter 3 - THE SIGNATURE THAT SHOULD NEVER HAVE EXISTED
“Where did you get my signature?”
Naomi's question echoed through the wedding hall.
Eric remained calm.
“From the document you approved last week.”
“I didn't approve anything.”
“You're upset. Perhaps you've forgotten.”
Naomi looked at him.
She knew her own handwriting.
The capital N curved backward slightly because she had broken her wrist in high school and changed how she held a pen.
Whoever had signed the document knew that detail.
But something else bothered her.
The tiny dot beside the final letter.
She had seen it before.
On the wedding paperwork Eric had asked her to sign the previous month.
It wasn't part of her signature.
It was a small ink mark left by a leaking pen.
And somehow, it had appeared in exactly the same place.
“This signature was copied,” Naomi said.
Eric's face tightened.
“That's a serious accusation.”
“Then it deserves a serious answer.”
Daniel stepped between them.
“Can we please discuss this somewhere private?”
Naomi looked at the guests watching from their seats.
Aunt June was holding Miriam's arm.
Near the back, eight-year-old Lucy, Daniel and Marisol's daughter, stood beside her grandmother's oldest friend.
Lucy had been chosen as flower girl.
Her little pink basket was still filled with rose petals.
Naomi lowered her voice.
“Daniel, take Lucy somewhere quiet. She shouldn't have to watch this.”
Daniel looked relieved.
But Lucy walked directly toward Miriam.
“Grandma, does your head hurt?”
Miriam bent down.
“A little, sweetheart.”
Lucy reached into her basket and offered her a white rose.
“This might help.”
Miriam took it with trembling fingers.
For one moment, nobody spoke.
Then Naomi turned back to Eric.
“You have five minutes to explain what this document is.”
They moved into a private hotel conference room.
Aunt June stayed with Lucy near the reception area.
Inside were Naomi, Miriam, Eric, Daniel, and Marisol.
Naomi placed the sale authorization on the table.
“Start talking.”
Eric loosened his tie.
“Longview wants to purchase Willow House and the adjoining parcels. They're planning a mixed-use development. It's a very good offer.”
“How much?”
“Four hundred and eighty thousand dollars.”
Naomi stared at him.
The house was worth more than that to her family.
But the price wasn't what frightened her most.
“What does this have to do with our wedding?”
Eric glanced at Daniel.
“Your brother ran into financial difficulties.”
Daniel closed his eyes.
Naomi turned toward him.
“What difficulties?”
Daniel owned a small restaurant that had struggled since the previous winter.
He had told everyone business was improving.
He had even offered to cater the rehearsal dinner.
“Daniel?”
Her brother swallowed.
“The restaurant didn't recover after the second location closed.”
“How bad?”
He looked at Miriam.
“Bad enough.”
Marisol spoke sharply.
“Tell her the number.”
Daniel rubbed his forehead.
“One hundred and eighty-two thousand dollars.”
Naomi took a step backward.
She remembered Daniel borrowing money to expand his restaurant.
She remembered her mother proudly attending the opening.
But nobody had mentioned a debt that large.
“Why is Willow House involved?”
Miriam finally spoke.
“Because I signed the loan.”
Naomi turned.
“What?”
Her mother's voice was barely audible.
“Daniel needed financing. The bank wouldn't lend him enough without additional security.”
“So you put up your share of the house?”
Miriam nodded.
Naomi felt sick.
“Mom, why didn't you tell me?”
“Because Daniel promised he'd repay it within a year.”
Daniel immediately said, “I was making the payments.”
“Until when?”
He stared at the floor.
“February.”
It was October now.
Naomi calculated silently.
Eight months.
Eight months of missed payments, collection letters, and fear.
And not once had anyone told her.
“Did you know?” she asked Marisol.
Marisol's eyes filled with tears.
“I knew about the loan. I didn't know how bad it had gotten until this summer.”
Naomi looked at her brother's wife.
The woman who had called Miriam's braid “just hair” had been living under the threat of losing the family home.
But that still didn't explain the cruelty.
“Why did you have Mom's braid cut?”
Marisol's expression hardened.
“We're discussing the property.”
“I'm discussing my mother.”
“Naomi, everything isn't about you.”
Naomi almost laughed.
“My wedding dress is covered in wine. My mother has been humiliated. And apparently someone forged my signature to sell our home.”
Eric interrupted.
“Nobody forged anything.”
He produced a second page.
“The sale is subject to ordinary title verification. Longview needs both owners' approval, and the buyer has already arranged financing based on the consent we submitted.”
Naomi studied the page.
“Then they can be told that I never consented.”
Eric's jaw tightened.
“That could create serious legal and financial consequences.”
“For whom?”
He didn't answer.
Naomi turned back to Miriam.
“Mom, did you sign this?”
Miriam wiped her eyes.
“Yes.”
Naomi's heart sank.
“Why?”
“Because I thought it would protect Daniel.”
Daniel whispered, “Mom, please.”
But Miriam continued.
“Eric said the lender was preparing to enforce the loan. He said if I didn't cooperate, I could lose my share of the house and drag you into a terrible dispute.”
Naomi stared at Eric.
“You told her that?”
“I explained the risks.”
“You frightened a seventy-year-old woman into signing away her home.”
“Your mother is perfectly capable of making decisions.”
“Then why didn't you tell her she could have independent advice?”
Eric looked away.
That was answer enough.
Naomi sat down.
Suddenly, the entire wedding seemed different.
Eric had insisted on choosing the date.
He had handled the financial paperwork.
He had offered to pay for the hotel.
He had even persuaded Naomi to hold the rehearsal dinner away from Willow House because it was supposedly being inspected for repairs.
She had mistaken control for generosity.
“Why didn't you come to me, Daniel?” she asked.
Her brother pulled out a chair.
“Because you were finally happy. Eric said he could fix everything without involving you.”
Naomi stared at the man she'd planned to marry.
“You told my brother that?”
Eric shrugged.
“I was trying to keep his family from falling apart.”
Miriam suddenly stood.
“No.”
Everyone looked at her.
Her hands shook, but her voice grew stronger.
“That's not what you told me.”
Eric's face changed.
“Miriam—”
“You said you would protect Daniel if I kept quiet until after the wedding.”
Naomi's breath caught.
“After the wedding?”
Miriam nodded.
“He told me married people should make financial decisions together. That once you were married, you would understand why the sale was necessary.”
Naomi looked at Eric.
He had expected her to become his wife before she learned what he'd done.
Then Miriam said something even worse.
“The bank isn't the one holding Daniel's loan anymore.”
Eric moved toward her.
“That's enough.”
Miriam stepped away from him.
May you like
She faced Naomi.
“Eric bought the debt himself.”
