Chapter 4 - THE AUDIT
By 8:00 AM,
the Bennett headquarters was in an uproar.
I sat in the glass-walled boardroom,
surrounded by a team of six forensic accountants.
Daniel was barred at the front desk,
his security badge deactivated.
The news of the gala had already made the morning tabloids.
"Bennett Heiress Reclaims Jewels and Dignity,"
the headlines read.
But the real story was in the spreadsheets.
"He's been clever,"
the lead accountant,
Sarah,
said,
pointing to a screen.
"He used a series of shell companies to bill the foundation for 'consulting services'."
"The money then moved to a personal account in Celeste's name."
"The total?"
I asked.
"Two point four million over eighteen months."
I felt a cold rage settle in my bones.
That was money meant for the children's wing.
Money meant for the legacy my mother had bled for.
"Is it enough for criminal charges?"
I asked.
"More than enough,"
Sarah replied.
"But there's something else, Maya."
She pulled up a medical file.
My heart stopped for a second.
"Celeste’s pregnancy?"
"We checked the bills for the clinic,"
Sarah said,
her voice cautious.
"She’s been seeing a specialist,
yes."
"But not for prenatal care."
"It’s an IVF clinic,
but the procedures were for egg freezing."
"She isn't pregnant, Maya."
"It was a fabrication to keep Daniel on the hook."
I leaned back in my chair,
a bitter laugh escaping my lips.
They were two of a kind,
predators feeding on each other.
Daniel was stealing my money to give to a woman who was lying to him to steal his.
The irony would have been funny if it wasn't so pathetic.
"Keep digging,"
I told the team.
"I want every penny traced."
"And call the police."
"I want the embezzlement report filed before lunch."
I walked to the window,
looking out over the city.
Daniel was probably in a hotel room right now,
panicking.
He thought his "son" was his shield.
He was about to find out he had no shield at all.
May you like
Only a mountain of debt and a long,
cold cell.
