Chapter 2 - THE EVIDENCE SHE NEVER EXPECTED
Vanessa let out a startled, unpleasant laugh.
“Daniel, you’re hilarious.”
“I’m not joking.”
Mom’s amusement disappeared. Dad advanced indignantly. “You can’t fire someone at her wedding.”
“I can terminate an executive for cause when the board has authorized it,” Mercer replied. “I had intended to speak to Vanessa privately on Monday. She just made it impossible for me to pretend the problem is only financial.”
Vanessa stiffened. “What financial problem?”
Everyone nearby seemed to turn toward me. Vanessa noticed and immediately sneered.
“Oh, I get it. Emma filled your head with lies. She tried this at her old job, too. She destroys careers because she’s jealous.”
“Then let’s talk about her old job,” Mercer said.
Dad seized my elbow. “Apologize to your sister. Now.”
I gently freed myself. “No.”
My refusal seemed to stun him more than Vanessa’s dismissal.
For half a year, my investigators had followed suspicious transactions within Halden’s regional development operation. Millions went to Northstar Strategies for consulting assignments that had never occurred. Vanessa’s executive login approved the bills. Some invoices changed just minutes after compliance inquiries, and the digital trail led back to one company laptop.
Northstar listed an old friend of Dad’s as president. Yet its account repeatedly transferred funds into a trust my parents controlled.
My team had accepted the investigation without knowing which executive was implicated. Upon discovering the family connection, I declared my conflict and withdrew from final judgments. Outside lawyers confirmed the evidence, while another forensic firm independently repeated our tests.
Mercer understood the findings; Vanessa had no idea. Her recent intimidation of a junior accountant only increased the audit committee’s urgency.
She thrust her phone forward. “I have bonuses, contracts, board relationships. You’ll regret embarrassing me.”
“Your access was disabled this afternoon,” Mercer said. “Outside counsel sent you a notice. You haven’t opened it.”
She opened her inbox, and the confidence drained from her face.
Someone murmured, “Is she serious?” Another guest began filming. Mercer politely requested that phones be put away. I was grateful; I didn’t want a spectacle.
Vanessa nevertheless escalated matters, pointing straight at me.
“She stole confidential information! She hacked my accounts!”
From my handbag, I retrieved one folded sheet: the conflict disclosure I had signed four months earlier. I passed it to Mercer.
“No,” I said. “I was hired to find the missing money. And when I discovered your name, I made certain strangers checked every conclusion.”
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Dad’s complexion turned ashen. He knew the destination of those transfers.
Vanessa glanced between us, finally realizing that the relative she considered a failure had refused to ignore the truth.
