The Dead Notary
Chapter 04 - The Dead Notary
The forged transfer carried a notarized signature.
That was the first major mistake.
The notary was listed as Helen Carver.
Claire knew the name because Helen had notarized her grandfather’s trust amendments for twenty years.
Helen had also died two years earlier.
Officer Santos read the date again.
“According to this, Ms. Carver notarized the transfer last month.”
Claire nodded.
“She was buried in Tacoma in 2024.”
Vanessa’s face lost color.
Daniel stepped down from the porch.
“This is a clerical error.”
“A dead notary is not clerical,” Claire said.
The second police officer, Rachel Kim, walked over from the cruiser after checking the county property database.
She showed Santos the screen.
“The registered owner is the Sullivan Family Trust. Sole beneficial occupant: Claire Sullivan Bennett.”
Vanessa stared at Claire’s identification.
Daniel’s voice sharpened.
“Online records can lag.”
Officer Kim shook her head.
“The recorder flagged an attempted transfer as suspected fraud three days ago.”
Claire looked at Daniel.
Officer Santos turned toward Vanessa.
“Who removed these belongings?”
Vanessa’s confidence returned as anger.
“They were abandoned.”
Claire pointed toward the quilt near the curb.
“My mother made that. It was on my bed this morning before I left for Portland.”
Daniel spoke quickly.
“She has not lived here for weeks.”
Claire opened her phone and showed the officer a utility payment, security entry logs, and a grocery delivery from four days earlier.
No readable details faced the crowd, but the timestamps were enough.
Officer Kim looked at Daniel.
May you like
“Sir, this is not your property.”
The sentence changed the driveway.
