Patricia remembered Brenda describing herself as the owner’s business partner.
She had paid in cash because Brenda offered a discount.
“She said the owner preferred it that way,” Patricia explained.
Daniel asked whether she still had any messages.
Patricia found a text thread on her old phone.
It included a photograph of Daniel’s backyard and directions to park on a different street.
Brenda had asked guests to avoid the driveway because the owner was working from home.
“You weren’t there,” Patricia said.
“No,” Daniel replied.
“I was visiting my sister in Cincinnati.”
Patricia looked ashamed.
“I should have asked more questions.”
Daniel told her the responsibility for truthful advertising belonged to the person offering the rental.
Patricia agreed to send copies of her messages.
Before they ended the call, she mentioned a second name.
A woman named Sloane Fletcher had handled the booking payment.
Daniel searched the public business records and found that Sloane had once worked with Brenda in event management.
The name appeared beside a dissolved company with multiple unpaid judgments.
Daniel sent the information to Priya.
He did not know whether Sloane had helped create the false listing.
He did know the investigation now had a clearer starting point.
Chapter 17: Sloane’s Version
Sloane Fletcher agreed to meet investigators after learning that the pool’s actual owner disputed every rental.
Her attorney attended the interview.
Sloane said she had processed payments for Brenda during the company’s early months.
She believed Brenda had leased the property from Daniel for private events.
Brenda had shown her an unsigned draft contract and later claimed it had been completed.
Sloane never saw Daniel in person.
She admitted that she should have verified ownership before accepting fees on Brenda’s behalf.
Investigators requested the old bank records and business correspondence.
Sloane supplied copies of invoices showing her work ended after a dispute over missing deposits.
One invoice contained a note that caught Daniel’s attention.
Brenda had charged customers an additional safety supervision fee.
The money was supposed to pay licensed attendants.
Sloane told investigators she had never received invoices from any lifeguard service.
Daniel felt the room grow colder as Priya described the finding.
“That doesn’t establish where the money went,” Priya cautioned.
“But it makes the claim of licensed supervision much harder to explain.”
Chapter 18: The Gate
The gate itself became important to the investigation.
Daniel had replaced the latch twice after finding it damaged.
His locksmith, Rafael Soto, kept photographs of the work for warranty purposes.
Rafael showed investigators the original latch and the replacement installed three months later.
