Chapter 6 - What Thomas Told MeI wish it had ended quickly after that. It didn't. Real investigations don't move like television — interviews, statements, requests for records, calls from attorneys. Renee had to repeat what happened to her more times than she wanted to. I answered embarrassing questions about my own finances, each one a reminder of how much access I'd casually handed over.
Then investigators found something none of us expected. Vanessa had apparently done this before. Her second ex-husband, Gregory Voss, lived in Phoenix. He'd never pursued criminal charges — during the divorce, he'd believed proving the misconduct would cost more than just walking away. When investigators reached out, he agreed to cooperate.
Three months after my canceled wedding, he called me. We talked for nearly an hour.
"She makes you feel cruel for questioning her," he said.
"Yes."
"And she never asks for everything at once. She takes one small piece at a time."
That described Vanessa exactly. Gregory said she'd talked him into merging savings, refinancing property, adding her to several accounts. By the time he understood how much control she had, more than $80,000 had disappeared into transfers and debts he said he never approved. He recovered almost none of it.
"Why didn't you warn anyone?" I asked.
"Who? Her next boyfriend? Her next husband? I didn't know who they'd be."
I had no answer to that.
Four months after the wedding that never happened, Vanessa was charged in connection with the unauthorized loan application and the assault involving Renee. The case moved slowly — negotiations, an initial not-guilty plea, Renee bracing herself for a trial. Then, almost nine months after the canceled ceremony, Vanessa accepted a plea deal on the financial charges and a reduced assault charge.
She avoided serious prison time, but she didn't simply walk away — supervised probation, financial restrictions, court-ordered restitution, and a no-contact order protecting Renee. Because my banks and institutions had been alerted so quickly, the largest transactions she'd planned never went through.
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That flash drive saved far more than money. It saved my house, my retirement, probably years of legal disaster.
But there was one thing it couldn't automatically fix.
