Chapter 6 - The Setup
The local newspaper, The Riverton Gazette, was not known for high-stakes investigative journalism. It was the kind of paper that ran front-page stories about middle-school bake sales and high school football championships.
But on Thursday morning, the front-page headline was different.
HEALTH BOARD TRUSTEE ACCUSED OF ESTATE FRAUD, ASSAULT.
The article was brief but devastating. It detailed the civil suit filed by Vance & Associates on behalf of Megan Mercer, alleging that Richard Mercer and his eldest daughter, Emily Vance-Croft, had forged documents to steal a $300,000 inheritance. It also mentioned the "physical altercation" at the home of Emily Vance-Croft that resulted in medical treatment for the plaintiff.
By noon, the article had been shared hundreds of times on the town's Facebook pages.
The reaction was immediate.
Emily’s social media accounts, which had been filled with pictures of her perfect kids and her "independent mom" lifestyle, were flooded with comments. Some were from friends expressing disbelief, but most were from local parents who had watched Emily treat the town like her personal playground for years.
“I always wondered how she bought that new place after her divorce.” “And she’s always complaining about how hard she has it. While stealing from her own sister?” “Look at the medical report—she stabbed her with a fork? What kind of mother does that?”
My phone was a constant stream of notifications, but I had blocked my family’s numbers. Aunt Carol and Sarah Vance handled the calls from the lawyers.
“They’re trying to offer a settlement,” Sarah told me during our afternoon meeting. She was reviewing a document that had just been faxed from my father’s attorney. “Richard is offering to pay back the fifty thousand he took, and Emily is offering to sign a promissory note for the remaining two hundred and fifty thousand, payable over ten years.”
“A promissory note?” Carol laughed, a sharp, barking sound. “From Emily? She hasn't held a job in ten years! That note isn't worth the paper it’s printed on.”
“Exactly,” Sarah said. “It’s a stalling tactic. They want us to withdraw the lawsuit so the health board doesn't suspend Richard at their meeting next week. Once the suit is dropped, they’ll declare bankruptcy or simply refuse to pay, and we’ll have to spend another fifty thousand dollars in legal fees just to enforce the note.”
She looked at me, a sharp, knowing smile on her face.
“We’re going to reject the offer. And we’re going to schedule their depositions for next Wednesday. Under oath, in my office, with a court reporter and a video camera.”
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“Will they show up?” I asked.
“They have to,” Sarah said. “If they don't, we’ll file for a default judgment, and the judge will grant us everything we’re asking for—including the immediate seizure of Emily’s townhouse and your father’s accounts. They have to play our game now, Megan. And they are very, very bad at it.”
