“Marcus, this gives us a reason to investigate whether the valuation and acquisition materials properly accounted for the easement.”
I looked toward the garage.
“And if they didn't?”
“That could be significant. But we need records, not guesses.”
I nodded.
“Okay.”
She continued.
“Also, the payment history arrived.”
My stomach tightened.
“What did you find?”
Rachel took a breath.
“Several payments were held in an unapplied-funds account rather than credited as you reasonably expected. That doesn't settle the entire dispute, but it changes the numbers.”
I sat down.
“How much?”
“Enough that the cure amount in the original demand may be substantially overstated.”
For several seconds, I couldn't speak.
Then she continued.
“And the insurance certificate appears to have been rejected because of a clerical classification problem between the old lender and the new servicing entity, not because your policy actually lapsed.”
I looked toward the ceiling.
For a moment, I wanted to laugh.
Or cry.
Or throw something.
The deadline that had nearly destroyed my life was partly built on accounting entries and a paperwork dispute.
Rachel wasn't finished.
“We're demanding correction, preservation of records, and a temporary suspension of enforcement while the account is independently reconciled. If necessary, we'll seek appropriate court relief.”
I closed my eyes.
For the first time in days, the number forty thousand no longer seemed like an immovable wall.
It was still a serious financial problem.
But it was a problem that might have been presented inaccurately.
And that meant somebody had to explain why.
Across town, Vanessa was asking different questions.
She had asked an independent review committee to examine potential conflicts involving Arthur Bell and the acquisition of distressed property loans.
When the committee obtained the transaction materials, they discovered that Bell had failed to disclose a financial interest in a redevelopment venture connected with Harbor Gate.
That venture had pursued properties near my garage.
And the valuation materials for the land contained optimistic assumptions about consolidating access through the block.
The investment committee had not been given the complete picture.
Bell's personal interest in the property was a material conflict.
When Vanessa learned what the reviewers had found, she didn't call me with a promise to fix everything.
She called the company's independent counsel.
Then the board.
And requested that the relevant transactions be placed under formal review.
Arthur Bell had spent nearly thirty years waiting for Theo Kane's garage to become available.