Then his eyes filled.
"Grandpa?"
She nodded.
"Yes."
Her voice broke.
"At least about the missing payment. The records support what he said."
The child lowered his head.
And began crying.
The most disturbing document appeared near the bottom of the case.
It was not an original deed.
It was a letter written by the escrow agent who handled the transaction.
The letter was addressed to the family and dated after the payment deadline.
It stated that the escrow agent had not received the funds required to complete the transfer.
It also stated that the original executed deed remained subject to the escrow instructions and was not authorized for delivery to the purchaser.
The attorney read the letter carefully.
Then examined the final paragraph.
The escrow agent described receiving pressure from a finance-company representative to release the documents anyway.
He refused.
According to the letter, someone subsequently attempted to obtain copies of the deeds without authorization.
The escrow agent requested an independent meeting with the family.
Then the letter ended.
The lawyer looked toward the remaining papers.
There were two more envelopes.
One contained correspondence about the disputed transaction.
The other contained a certified copy of a document supposedly filed with the county several years later.
That document described a completed transfer.
It was the foundation of the title history relied upon by later owners.
The attorney compared the signature page with the original escrow agreement.
The names appeared similar.
But the handwriting differed in subtle ways.
She did not attempt to declare the later document forged based only on appearance.
That was a question for qualified examination.
Then she noticed the notarial acknowledgment.
It listed a county notary whose commission information could be checked through historical records.
The date appeared several years after the original agreement.
The attorney made a note.
"We need the notary records."
The records specialist nodded.
"And the county recording index."
The attorney continued.
"Also the original deed, if it survives."
The mother looked toward her.
"Do you think somebody forged it?"
The attorney considered.
"I think we have enough inconsistencies to investigate the possibility."
She paused.
"But it would be irresponsible to reach a conclusion before examining the official records and authenticating the documents."