There was also a notebook in which Ruth recorded every dividend she received and every date she expected another.

The notebook was heartbreaking in its ordinary detail.

Between amounts, Ruth had written reminders to buy birthday candles and get Eleanor’s school shoes repaired.

One page bore a note: Harold says the transfer is temporary until new partnership formed.

Ask for written confirmation.

Dana’s corporate counsel explained that the documents suggested a dispute worth investigating, not proof of theft.

A transaction could have been authorized by an agreement we had not yet found.

The crucial question was whether the signature on the eventual transfer had been genuine and whether fair consideration had been paid.