Page 74 of Chase

“Before the bank could foreclose on the Rivera house, they miraculously came into enough money to clear the debt. The payment came from Varley Medical Funding Inc., a direct payment into the Riveras’ personal joint account.”

“Why would a medical funding group pay a doctor directly?” I say, frustrated with how slowly Harrison is parting with information. “If it were research, surely the funds would be deposited directly into whatever organization’s account.”

“You would think so. Emma did some digging on Varley Medical Funding, assuming it was attached to the main hospital. It turns out there’s very little connecting the two businesses beyond one sole director on the board.

“Emma has been through every bit of paperwork she can find on the business. Apart from the payment to the Riveras, it seems Varley Medical Funding has supported very few causes. A few small-scale cancer research initiatives and a nationwide program into dementia in local communities. ”

“And do we know what initiative the payment to the Rivera’s was meant to fund?” I ask, perplexed by the random evidence of goodness knows what.

“Nothing more than the description line on the bank payment. Rivera Organ Study. The payment came from a bank in Bermuda that’s well known for protecting customer data. There are no details of such a study listed anywhere we can find,” Harrison says.

“So, what are we thinking?” Connor asks. “That the payment to cover the house is actually a loan. How much was it?” Strangely, no one asked what should have been an obvious question before now.

“One-point-five million pounds.”

“What? Is their house worth that?” I stammer, stunned by the amount.

“According to my property guy, no. The house is valued at one-point-two million. Two payments were made from the Rivera’s account within twenty-four hours of the large deposit.”

“Let me guess,” Damon says. “One to the bank and the other to an untraceable destination.”

“Bingo,” Harrison confirms. “The house was not only in arrears but also in negative equity. Clearing the debt to the bank cost just under one-point-four million. Sadly for the Riveras, they bought when property prices were high and have remortgaged multiple times during various financial disputes and, of course, their divorce.”

“People are insane,” Hunter mutters. “Marriage is for idiots. To get divorced then remarry the same mug is certifiable.”

“Devane, you are married,” Damon points out, and Hunter shrugs his shoulders. “You and Harrison are currently the only two married men here.”

“Only on paper. It’s all for show. I’ve not seen her in years. Isabella does her thing, and I do mine.”

“You mean she told you to fuck off,” Connor suggests, and Hunter glares at him.

“The feeling was mutual.”

“Do you think you’ll get married again?” I ask Damon before I can stop myself. I immediately regret it. My friend's eyes come to me, but instead of anger, there’s only confusion.

“In all honesty, I don’t know. I’ve only just got Emma back, and with my track record, I’m praying I don’t fuck it up again. Marriage isn’t off the table, but it won't be soon.” His answer is simple and straightforward: he honestly doesn’t know. “I don’t even know if she would want to. We’ve never discussed it. She’s home. That’s all that matters. Annie has her mother back.” His use of the word “mother” doesn’t go unnoticed, but no one comments and every man in the room relaxes a fraction. Damon finally accepts the truth that Emma has always been his daughter’s mother.

“Anyway, as happy as I am for Damon and Emma, can we get back to the task in hand?” Connor says. “Is the Riveras’ house still in their name? It’s been sitting empty since they disappeared.”

After the couple vanished, Hunter’s men have been keeping tabs on the house they seemed so desperate to keep. To obtain a huge payment of money from an unknown source to allow you to pay your mortgage off and then abandon the house indicates they’ve run for their lives or are being held somewhere. If the funds received were a loan... My mind starts whirling with possibilities.

“After the house debt was cleared, were any regular outgoing payments made?” I question, and everyone focuses on me. “If the payment was actually a loan, perhaps we’re missing the repayments.”

“Nothing beyond the usual living costs covered by Dr. Rivera’s wages have left that account since the large deposit. And there’s been no movement beyond direct debits since they disappeared.”

“Do we know who owns this funding company?” Connor asks.

“This is where it gets interesting,” Harrison says. “The sole director is named Maeve Carlisle. When Emma tracked her down, it turned out she was an eighty-year-old single lady living in Manchester with no knowledge of the company. She said her son Den had her sign some paperwork a while ago but didn’t know what it was for. It was for her security, was all he would tell her.”

“And do we know where we can track Den down?” Hunter asks.

“No, sadly, Maeve relies on him contacting her. He told her he has no phone. She gave us a basic description of dark hair and blue eyes. She couldn’t even provide a photo. Emma looked at the old lady’s finances; she lives on her pension plus a monthly payment from a private fund, again in Bermuda. She could find no trace of any living relatives or, in fact, a son called Den.” Harrison sighs before continuing. “The only true connection we can find is that Maeve attends a club for dementia sufferers, which is one of the programs funded by Varley Medical Funding.”

“So let me get this straight,” I say, needing to summarize the nonsense spoken in the boardroom today. “The Riveras obtained money to clear their debts plus extra from what seems to be a dubious medical funding organization. The sole director of said company doesn’t know of its existence. She’s in her eighties and signed paperwork that she had no understanding of on the say-so of a son who doesn’t seem to exist. And she attends a memory loss clinic of some kind funded by the organization she supposedly owns.”

“In a nutshell, yes.” Harrison rolls his shoulders, unruffled by the bizarre situation he just described. “He usually contacts her by phone. Checking the phone records, I see regular weekly calls from a US mobile phone but located in London. It’s a burner, so there are no customer details.

“I told her he was due to receive some maturing investments, but we had lost his contact details. We asked Maeve to alert us if Den contacted her. As a reminder, I left a note on the pad next to her handset on the table in her house. She seems to be able to read still, though is quite confused when talking. If this man is a scammer, which he clearly is, the lure of money should bring him out of the woodwork.”

---