What I did for a year (more dark side)

I was writing a novel at the time of my father's death all about the nightmare part of when I was 12-13 in my hometown just before my parents separated. Plug for book: www.murdernovel.com
When he died, the force of the writing process sort of fizzled and I stopped short of finishing the first draft by only twenty pages or so. It sat for the next five years. I saw the estate and a way to get us some money. The real problem of the estate was the thing represented above. (This is not the real map of the cemetery, but this gives you the idea) I had a similar map on the wall of my studio for a year. I had the lawyer in Illinois ship me all of the records. Glen's records were a mess, notes written on restaurant napkins, receipts which might have been real or not. He sold markers and burial vaults he didn't have. It was unclear who owned what plots.  In analysis, his entire set-up was losing $10,000 a year- had been for at least 5 years. The smell of what he was doing was there- but I had to verify and document it. I reconciled the cemetery, it took about a year. I entered into a contract with a marker  and vault company to provide them when we needed them. The greasy business partner did the opening and closing of the graves and kept the grounds up and we paid him a salary.
It became very clear very quickly that this was serious concern to the families that owned plots there. All these little old ladies were expecting to join their husbands there. I took care of them. Glen had removed a marker because one widow wasn't paying her fees. It amounted to about $150.00. We forgave the debt and put the marker back on her husband's grave. You are expected to put a percentage of the plot sale value into a trust account for perpetual care. It's the law. (State by state will differ, but they all have similar laws) Ole Glen was stealing from that account. When I finished, it was very clear that the fund was short $50,000.00, exactly what he was short the last five years.

When we sold the farm land, we put that 50K back into that account. When we finally gave up the cemetery to the Illinois, we gave all that to them along with my year's worth of reconciliation, in hard copy and computer data. 

Toward the end, the sleazy business partner called and told me that folks were getting concerned that there was no marker on Glen's grave. I told him, I was planning to order it when I finished the reconciliation. I wanted to make sure we had the money to pay for it. You could have heard a pin drop. I told him it would be there next week. And I did order it.

I've said several times to those close to me that this was my act of erasing my father from the face of the earth.  
The earth swallows its mistakes.

God save us, if our children feel this way.