No. Those figures couldn't have been right. THEY COULDN'T HAVE BEEN! Could they? Talia stared at them in disbelief. Too many zeroes here. And there was a name beside each of the deposits. A name Talia didn't recognise. Her wheels started turning again. Back to the day of Grampy's funeral service.
Someone was standing behind Mum and Dad that morning, off to the distance in front of a white car. She'd never seen him before. He was tall with red hair, the colour of a circus clown's wig. His eyes were hidden behind dark sunglasses.
Scott Heswig. Who the hell was Scott Heswig? Maybe he was someone Mum and Dad worked with she'd never met. Maybe a friend they'd met on one of their many cruises. Whoever he was, Talia didn't like what she saw on the screen. An eerie thought crossed her mind, and she slammed the laptop shut.
Should she call Granny to ask if she knew anything about this Scott Heswig or the sudden large sums of money in her parents' bank account?
No. She wouldn't bother Granny with this information. Mum and Dad would only lie to her or make up some story about where the money came from. But she would call the bank the next morning. And then she'd call Jim Mitchell's office.
Jim had introduced himself to Talia at her Grandparents' house after the service. He was a friendly fellow, quiet and polite. Talia thanked him for looking after her Grandparents.
"My pleasure," he told Talia. "They're good people. If you ever need anything, you can call me day or night at this number. I'm so very sorry for your loss."
Talia brewed over her coffee the next morning, trying to figure out where all that money had come from. At last, she reached for her phone. The teller was cheerful.
"I think I've accidentally accessed the wrong account," Talia confessed, feeling only the slightest twinge of guilt. I was trying to access my parents' joint account. They're away on a vacation and asked me to keep an eye on it for them while they're gone."
"Oh, sure," the teller said, sounding as if she'd had too much caffeine that morning. "Just give me their names and the account number you're trying to access."
Talia spouted it off. She wasn't prepared for the answer the teller gave her. "No, ma'am, you have the right account number. I can't provide any personal information, I'm afraid. Is there anything else I can help you with today?"
"No, thank you. Have a great day."
Fury boiled over in Talia. She wasn't given to anger, but something just didn't add up. She waited a bit, then rang Jim's office.
"Hey, Talia. What's up?" Jim sounded exhausted, but still cheerful.
"Jim, I need a huge favour from you. My parents have a huge amount of money being deposited into the bank account, but I've never heard of this guy in my life. Something smells fishy about all this to me. Can you check him out for me?"
"Sure, but what's making you so suspicious of him? Does he have a criminal record or something?"
"I don't know, Jim. What I do know is, whatever he's up to, my parents are in on it!"
"I can believe that, Talia. I haven't trusted your parents since I met them."
Talia laughed out loud.
"It'll be about a week or so before I can do a background check on this guy. the I'm off to the Virgin Islands with some friends on Saturday. Will you be okay until I get back?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine, thanks. You lucky stiff! You deserve a break. Enjoy the islands!"
It took Jim over a month and a half before he could dig up any information on Scott Heswig. He was every bit as shady and deceitful as Talia's parents.
And with good reason.
To be continued.
