The alliance between Vance and Rebecca disintegrated within days.

Under questioning, each pointed at the other — Vance insisting Rebecca had run the shell company, Rebecca insisting Vance had forged the signatures, my parents insisting they had guaranteed loans whose terms they had never understood.

Each of them tried to survive by feeding the others to the investigators.

I did not have to argue with any of it.

I handed over the paper trail and let the numbers say what numbers say, which is the truth, in the one language that cannot be charmed.

Forensic audits confirmed that the credit applications had been submitted with my stolen information and forged with a hand that was not mine.