He put on glasses, read silently. His face changed.
“Where did you get this?”
“It was her husband’s.”
“This says the property was never legally transferred to the son.”
“What?”
“The deed stayed in the husband’s name. When he died, it passed to his wife. Not the son.”
“But Ethan sold the house—”
“Then the sale may be invalid.”
Linda’s heart pounded. She didn’t tell Evelyn yet. She needed certainty.
In Charlotte, the buyers went to the county office to record the deed.
“We’re here to register the transfer.”
The clerk typed, frowned.
“There’s a problem.”
“What problem?”
“The title doesn’t match. The property is in someone else’s name.”
“We paid nearly $1.2 million!”
“You need to contact the seller.”
The realtor called Ethan. Voicemail. Left a message.
Ethan saw it and deleted it.
“I’m done with that,” he muttered.
Linda went to legal aid.
After hours of waiting, a woman in a gray suit called her name.
“I’m attorney Sofia Moreno. Come in.”
Linda told everything.
Sofia studied the document.
“Did your mother sign anything authorizing a sale?”
“A power of attorney… but it was for simple things.”
Sofia nodded. “If that’s confirmed, the sale is void.”
“So the property is still hers?”
“Yes.”