I knew something was wrong before Tammy said a word. It was Tuesday night, just after 8:00, and I was sitting at the kitchen table finishing some paperwork for my company.
I owned a marine equipment business that supplied navigation systems, safety gear, and electronic equipment to commercial fishing boats along the coast.
I had built it over 14 years, starting with one rented warehouse and three employees. Tammy had been my wife for 19 years.
She walked through the front door wearing a black dress I had never seen before. She stopped in front of the hallway mirror and checked her earrings. I looked at the clock. "Where are you going?" She smiled at my reflection.
"Out." "With who?" She turned around. "I'm going on a date." For a second I thought I'd heard her wrong.
"A date?" Tammy laughed. "Yes, Alan, a date." She picked up her purse from the counter. I stood up slowly.
"You're married." "I know." There was no embarrassment in her voice, no guilt. She actually looked amused. Then she gave me a small smile.
"Try not to be jealous." That was the moment something changed. I didn't raise my voice, I didn't grab her purse, I didn't ask who the man was. I simply looked at her and said, "I'm not jealous." Her smile faded slightly.
"Good. But if you walk out that door for a date, I'm filing for divorce." She stopped moving. "What?" "You heard me."
Her face changed completely. "You're serious?" "Completely." "You're really going to end a 19-year marriage because I'm going on one date?" I shook my head.
"No, I'm ending it because my wife just told me she's going on a date with another man." Tammy stared at me. "You have no idea what you're doing." "I know exactly what I'm doing." She stepped closer.
"You're going to regret this." "Maybe." I picked up my paperwork and walked toward the office. Behind me, Tammy said, "Alan." I stopped.
She lowered her voice. "If you start this, you won't like what comes out." I turned around. "Then, I guess we'll both find out." She stared at me for several seconds.
Then, she walked out. I heard her car leave the driveway. I didn't follow her. I opened my laptop and called my attorney, Gregory Shaw. "Gregory, I need to file for divorce."
He was quiet for a moment. "Are you sure?" "Yes." "Then, I'll start the paperwork tonight." I ended the call and sat back in my chair.
Tammy had made her choice. Now, I was going to make mine.
The next morning, I was at my office before 7:00. I had barely slept, but I wasn't tired. I was focused. Gregory had already sent me a list of things to secure before Tammy could move money, sell property, or make claims against my company. The first thing I checked was our joint bank account.
I expected to find a few unusual expenses. I found much more. There were five cash withdrawals totaling $4,800 over the previous 2 months. Then, I found three payments to a hotel in Wilmington. Another charge was for an expensive jewelry store.
I printed everything. Then, I checked the business account. That was where things became serious. Two payments had been made to a company called Harbor Point Consulting. I'd never heard of it.
Both payments were for $7,500. I called my office manager, Daniel Pierce, and asked him to pull up the invoices. "Who authorized these?" I asked. Daniel hesitated.
"Tammy?" "Why?" "She said they were consulting fees." "For what?"
"I don't know. She handled the financial side." I looked at the invoices. They were vague. No detailed description of services, no employee names, nothing that explained why my company had paid $15,000.
"Find out who owns Harbor Point," I said. Daniel nodded. I ended the call and looked through another folder. That was when I found a transfer for $25,000 from our business account into a personal account I didn't recognize. The account number wasn't mine.
I called the bank immediately. After verifying my identity, the representative told me the account belonged to a company connected to Tammy. I sat back in my chair. She hadn't just been spending money, she had been moving it.
That evening, Tammy came home around 9:00. I was sitting at the kitchen table with the bank statements in front of me. She walked in, saw the papers, and stopped. "You went through my accounts?" "Our accounts," I said.
She dropped her keys onto the counter. "You filed for divorce, Alan. What did you expect?" "I expected you to lie." She stared at me.
"You think everything is about money." "No, but $15,000 disappearing into a company I've never heard of is." She folded her arms. "Harbor Point helped me with some personal matters." "Using company money?"
"I was going to pay it back." "When?" She didn't answer. I pushed the statements toward her. Then I said, "And there's another problem."
Her expression changed. "What?" I held up a document. "Someone tried to use my company as collateral for a $180,000 loan." Tammy went completely still.
And for the first time since she told me about her date, she looked genuinely afraid.
Tammy stared at the loan document. "Where did you get that?" "From the bank." "You weren't supposed to have that." I leaned back in my chair.
"That tells me everything I need to know." She looked away. "It isn't what you think." "Then explain it." Tammy picked up the document and scanned the first page.
"I was going to tell you." "When?" She didn't answer. I pointed at the signature. "That isn't mine."
"I know." "Then whose is it?" Her silence lasted too long. I stood up. "Tammy, you tried to borrow $180,000 against a company you don't own."
"I was trying to protect myself." "From what?" "From you." I almost laughed.
"You told me you were going on a date. You weren't asking for protection. You were announcing that you'd already moved on." Her face tightened. "You don't understand what the last few years have been like for me."
"Then you should have talked to me instead of forging my signature." She slammed the document onto the table. "You think this is all about some date?" "No, I think the date was the part you wanted me to see." That shut her up.
I walked into my office and called Gregory. He answered immediately. "Did you find something?" "Someone tried to take out a loan against my company." "How much?"
"$180,000." There was a pause. "Do you recognize the lender?" "Yes. The paperwork came through one of our regular financial partners."
Gregory's voice became serious. "Alan, don't confront her again until we know where the money went." "I already confronted her." "Then stop now. Secure every business account and change every password she had access to."
"I'll handle it." I hung up and called my bank. Within an hour, Tammy's access to the company accounts was removed. Then I called Daniel and told him nobody was to approve payments without my authorization.
That afternoon, I found the name behind Harbor Point Consulting. Liam Roark. I knew him. Liam had worked with my company twice during the previous year. He had introduced himself as a business consultant and had spent months trying to convince me to expand into larger commercial contracts.