Chapter 4 - The Woman Ryan Never MentionedThree days later, I received a message from an unknown number.
You don't know the whole truth about Ryan.
I almost deleted it.
Then another message arrived.
Meet me at the Bluebird Café tomorrow at noon. Come alone.
I showed Marcus.
He immediately said:
“Don't go.”
“I need to know who it is.”
“We can send someone.”
“No.”
“Claire.”
“If they're connected to Ryan, they may disappear if they see police.”
Marcus sighed.
“Fine. But you're not going alone.”
I agreed.
The next day, I arrived at the café.
A woman sat near the window.
She looked to be in her early thirties.
Blonde hair.
Dark coat.
Nervous hands.
When she saw me, she stood.
“Claire?”
“Yes.”
“My name is Emily.”
I waited.
“Emily Carter.”
The name meant nothing.
Until she said:
“I used to work for Ryan.”
My heart tightened.
“Where?”
“At his private investment firm.”
“What do you want?”
“To apologize.”
“For what?”
She sat down.
“I helped him.”
“With what?”
“Moving money.”
I stared at her.
“How much?”
“I don't know.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Because I realized what he was doing.”
“What was he doing?”
Emily pulled out a flash drive.
“This.”
I didn't touch it.
“What is it?”
“Copies of the internal accounting system.”
She looked around.
“Ryan wasn't stealing from you alone.”
I frowned.
“Who else?”
“Other investors.”
“Millions?”
“Hundreds of millions.”
My stomach dropped.
“Grant built a network.”
“Northstar?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To make it look like the money was being invested.”
“But it wasn't?”
“No.”
“It was being moved.”
“Where?”
Emily whispered:
“Offshore accounts.”
I stared at her.
“Whose?”
She looked at me.
“Some of them belong to Grant.”
“Some?”
“Yes.”
“Whose are the others?”
She hesitated.
“Ryan.”
I felt numb.
“My husband?”
“Yes.”
“How much?”
“Approximately $11 million.”
I looked down at the flash drive.
“What do you want?”
“Protection.”
“You'll get it.”
Emily shook her head.
“Not from Ryan.”
“Then from whom?”
“Grant.”
“What are you afraid he'll do?”
She looked terrified.
“He already threatened me.”
“Why?”
“Because I discovered the final account.”
I waited.
“What's in it?”
Emily leaned closer.
“Your name.”
My blood ran cold.
“What?”
“Ryan created an account using your identity.”
“Why?”
“To move money.”
“How much?”
“Twenty-eight million dollars.”
I stared at her.
“I don't have twenty-eight million dollars.”
“I know.”
“But the account says you do.”
I felt dizzy.
“Why would he do that?”
“To make it look like you were committing fraud.”
I understood immediately.
If the government investigated the account, my name would be attached to millions in suspicious transactions.
Ryan could then claim I had been stealing.
And if they succeeded with the incompetency case...
I could lose everything.
Emily handed me the drive.
“I copied everything before I quit.”
I took it.
“Why help me?”
She looked down.
“Because I'm pregnant.”
I froze.
“I don't want my child growing up around people like Ryan.”
I looked at her.
Then I understood.
Ryan's cruelty wasn't limited to me.
May you like
It was who he had chosen to become.
And I was done waiting for him to change.
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