I heard movement on the other end. A chair rolling. A keyboard waking. “That’s your lake place.”
“Yes.”
“What are we looking for?”
“I need you to confirm the life estate notation in the encumbrances. It should be in the secondary recording index, cross-referenced to the parcel. Filed the same week as the transfer. I drafted it myself.”
A brief silence.
Then Frank said, very quietly, “Walt.”
“I know.”
“What did Kyle do?”
“He sold the property.”
Frank did not swear often. When he did, he chose his words with professional restraint. This time he said nothing at all for almost ten seconds, which told me everything.
“The buyer?” he asked.
“Lakefront Holdings out of Chicago. Three point two million cash.”
Another pause. “If that life estate is recorded properly—”
“It is.”
“And if the buyer missed it—”
