Chapter 2
The following Monday, Daniel demanded a family meeting at our house.
By seven o’clock, everyone was there.
Patricia arrived first, furious.
Kyle paced near the fireplace.
Megan sat rigidly beside her husband.
Daniel stood in the center of the living room like a man preparing to restore order.
“I think we’ve all taken this too far,” he announced.
I almost admired the confidence.
He still believed the problem was emotional.
He still thought this could be solved with an apology and access to my bank account.
“I agree,” I said.
Patricia exhaled dramatically.
“Good.”
“So I finished the audit.”
The room changed.
Daniel frowned.
“What audit?”
I placed four envelopes on the coffee table.
“One for each business that billed Westbridge.”
Kyle stopped pacing.
Megan’s face drained.
Daniel stared at me.
“You audited my family?”
“No.
My company audited its vendors.”
Patricia stood.
“How dare you?”
“Sit down.”
I didn’t raise my voice.
She sat.
That frightened Daniel more than shouting would have.
I opened the first report.
“Kyle’s company overbilled Westbridge by $71,400.”
Kyle immediately said, “That’s accounting confusion.”
“Then you can explain it to our attorneys.”
His mouth closed.
“Megan’s agency billed $96,000 for work our records show was largely performed by a freelancer she paid $14,000.”
Megan whispered, “That’s normal subcontracting.”
“Not when your contract prohibited it.”
Then I looked at Patricia.
“Your husband’s company submitted invoices for equipment purchases totaling $138,000.
Serial-number verification shows most of that equipment never existed.”
Patricia went ghost-white.
Daniel finally spoke.
“You’re destroying my family over one argument?”
“No.”
I turned toward him.
“I’m protecting myself because of what that argument revealed.”
His face twisted.
“I’m your husband.”
“And you threw a phone at my head because I helped my father with six hundred dollars.”
Silence.
“You told me my money was mine.
You told me yours was yours.
You made it very clear that generosity only counted when it flowed toward your family.”
Daniel glanced around the room.
Everyone was staring at him now.
Then I delivered the part he never saw coming.
“Westbridge terminated all three family contracts this morning.”
Kyle exploded.
“You can’t do that!”
“I already did.”
Megan stood.
May you like
“You’ll ruin us!”
“No.
