Derek called after me with perfect false concern. “Barl, please don’t leave like this. We’re family and we want to help you through this difficult time.”
I turned back at the door.
“No, Derek. You want to help yourself to our money and our business. But you underestimated one thing.”
“What’s that?” he asked, still playing the concerned family friend.
“You underestimated how far I’ll go to protect the people I love, even when they don’t believe they need protecting.”
I walked out of my childhood home feeling more alone than I’d ever felt in my life. But as I sat in my car, looking back at the house where Dererick was probably celebrating his victory, I made a promise to myself. This wasn’t over.
Not even close. Derek thought he’d isolated me from my family and destroyed my credibility. What he didn’t know was that I still had allies.
He’d never considered resources he didn’t know about and a determination he’d seriously underestimated. It was time to change tactics. If my family wouldn’t believe the truth when I presented it nicely, then I’d have to make sure Dererick’s lies became impossible to maintain.
And I knew exactly where to start. I drove aimlessly through Milfield’s empty streets for an hour, tears blurring my vision as I processed the magnitude of Derek’s manipulation. My own parents thought I was having a mental breakdown and my sister was actively helping a con artist steal our family legacy.
I felt utterly defeated until my phone rang with a number I hadn’t seen in months. Marcus. For a moment, I considered not answering.
Our breakup had been painful, and hearing his voice would only remind me of everything I’d sacrificed to save a family that no longer trusted me. But something made me pick up. “Barl, thank God you answered.
I’ve been trying to reach you for weeks.”
His familiar voice brought fresh tears to my eyes. “Marcus, this really isn’t a good time.”
“Actually, it might be the perfect time. I know this sounds crazy, but I think I have information about Derek Walsh that you need to hear.”
I pulled over into the parking lot of the abandoned gas station at the edge of town.
“What did you say, Derek Walsh?”
“He approached me through some mutual business contacts about an investment opportunity involving a family construction business in Colorado. When he mentioned the Heartwell name and said something about his sister-in-law, Barl, I knew he was talking about you and your family.”
My hands started shaking again. “Marcus, when did this happen?”
“About 3 weeks ago.
He wanted to meet for drinks to discuss a partnership opportunity in what he called undervalued family assets. Something about it felt wrong, especially when he started asking personal questions about you and our relationship. I started doing some research and barrel what I found is terrifying.”
I gripped the phone tighter.
“Tell me everything.”
“Derek Walsh isn’t who he says he is. He was fired from Mason Financial in Phoenix for embezzling client funds. Before that, Nevada Trust Management terminated him for stealing from estate accounts.
He’s currently under investigation by the Colorado Securities Commission for running unauthorized investment schemes.”
Oh my god, my worst fears were being confirmed by someone who had no reason to lie. “It gets worse.”
“I hired a private investigator named Tom Rodriguez who specializes in financial fraud cases. Tom found out that Derek has done this exact same thing to two other families in the Southwest.
He targets families with successful businesses, usually through a romantic relationship with a family member, then systematically destroys the business while stealing assets.”
I felt nauseated. “What happened to those other families?”
“One family in Arizona lost their restaurant chain worth $2.7 million. Another family in Nevada lost their land development company.
In both cases, Dererick disappeared with most of the liquid assets, leaving the families bankrupt and facing criminal charges for fraud they didn’t commit.”
The magnitude of Dererick’s operation was staggering. This wasn’t opportunistic theft. This was a sophisticated criminal enterprise.
“Marcus, my family doesn’t believe me. They think I’m having a mental breakdown because Derek has convinced them I’m the one stealing money.”
“That’s part of his pattern. Tom found court documents showing Derek uses the same psychological manipulation tactics every time.
He isolates his primary target by making them seem unstable or dishonest, then positions himself as the rational solution to the family’s problems.”
For the first time since receiving Dad’s dismissal text, I felt a spark of hope. “Can Tom’s evidence prove what Dererick’s really doing?”
“Tom thinks so, but we need to catch Derek in the act of actually stealing money or get him to confess to his plans on record. The problem is that Dererick’s smart and careful.
He never leaves a clear paper trail until he’s ready to disappear.”
I thought about the bank transfers I discovered and the fake documents Derek had prepared to frame me. “Marcus, I found evidence that Derek has already stolen over $300,000 from our business accounts. He’s also created fake records to make it look like I’ve been embezzling.”
“That’s exactly how he operates.
Tom says Derek always creates a fall guy within the family to take the blame for the theft. Usually, it’s whoever poses the biggest threat to his plans.”
“I need to meet with this Tom Rodriguez person. Can you arrange it?”
“Actually, I’m driving to Colorado tonight.
I never stopped caring about you, Barl. And when I realized Derek was targeting your family, I had to do something. Tom and I are planning to be in Milfield tomorrow morning.”
Tears were streaming down my face, but for the first time in days, they weren’t tears of despair.
“Marcus, why are you doing this? We broke up. You don’t owe me anything.”
His voice was soft and honest.
“Because I love you. I never stopped loving you. The breakup wasn’t about not caring anymore.
It was about not being able to handle the distance and the pressure of what you were going through. But when I thought someone might hurt you or your family, none of that other stuff mattered anymore.”
I closed my eyes and leaned back against the car seat. “I’ve missed you so much.”
“I’ve missed you, too.
But right now, let’s focus on stopping Derek before he destroys everything. Where can we meet tomorrow that’s safe and private?”
I thought about it. “Sarah’s bakery has a back office that’s completely private.
She opens at 5 in the morning, so we could meet there before the town wakes up.”
“Perfect. Tom and I will be there at 6:00. Barl, I need you to promise me something.”
“What?”
“Don’t confront Derek or your family again until we have a solid plan.
If Dererick realizes we’re investigating him, he might accelerate his timeline and disappear with whatever money he can grab.”
“You think he’s planning to run?”
“Tom says they always run eventually. The question is how much damage they do before they go. Dererick’s probably been planning his exit strategy since the day he arrived in Milfield.”
After we hung up, I drove back to my apartment with the first real hope I’d felt in weeks.
I wasn’t crazy. I wasn’t alone. And I wasn’t helpless.
Derek had made one crucial mistake in his otherwise perfect con. He’d tried to recruit Marcus as an investor, not realizing that Marcus would recognize my name and start investigating. That night, I barely slept again.
But this time, it was because I was planning instead of crying. Tomorrow, I would learn exactly how to fight back against a professional con artist. Derek thought he’d won by turning my family against me.
But he was about to discover that some battles are won by strategy, not just manipulation. I spent the hours before dawn going through every document I’d photographed, every conversation I could remember, and every detail of Derek’s behavior over the past six months. Tomorrow, I would start building a case that would expose Derek’s true nature and save my family from financial and emotional destruction.
Derek Walsh had picked the wrong family to target. He was about to learn that Barl Hartwell didn’t give up on the people she loved, even when they’d given up on her. At 5:45 the next morning, I was sitting in Sarah’s bakery kitchen, nursing my third cup of coffee and watching the sunrise through the flower dusted windows.
