Banks had asked for stronger collateral.

My inherited home stood there, beautiful, debt-free, and irresistible to people who had started treating it as theirs.

I said no to pledging the house.

Gavin called my refusal a lack of faith.

That was the first time I asked Lauren to review our papers.

She discovered a draft transfer document bearing a signature that resembled mine but was not mine.

She advised caution, notified the relevant title and lending contacts of the dispute, and insisted I preserve the correspondence.