Chapter 3 - The Woman Who Knew Too Much
By six that evening, I had learned two things.
Someone inside Morgan Holdings had been stealing money.
And my former wife had discovered it before I did.
What I still didn't understand was why Claire had disappeared without telling me.
Rebecca Shaw had refused to discuss her whereabouts or personal circumstances.
But she had confirmed one important fact.
Claire had documented suspicious activity involving Riverside before filing for divorce.
I called Ethan Brooks from a personal phone.
He answered immediately.
“Are you alone?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Don't come to the office.”
“Ethan, what's happening?”
“Someone has been moving money through consulting contracts attached to the Riverside project.”
“How much?”
“Four million, possibly more.”
My throat tightened.
“That project didn't have four million.”
“Not initially. Additional charitable commitments were routed through affiliated entities. Some were booked as legitimate expenses.”
“Who approved them?”
Silence.
“Ethan.”
“Your authorization appears on several.”
I sat down.
“That's impossible.”
“I know.”
“Then they're forged.”
“Or someone used your delegated signing authority.”
I thought of my executive team.
The chief operating officer.
The general counsel.
The finance department.
Then another name surfaced.
Madison Price.
Senior director of strategic partnerships.
The woman who had been sleeping in my bed that morning.
“Did Madison have access?”
Ethan hesitated.
“She administered several vendor relationships.”
I felt something cold move through my chest.
“Send me everything.”
“I can't. The records are under preservation hold.”
“By whom?”
“An outside forensic accounting firm. Claire requested an independent review through the foundation's board.”
I stared at the wall.
“Claire hired investigators?”
“Not private investigators to follow people,” Ethan said. “Financial auditors. She found irregularities and took them to the foundation's independent directors.”
“Why didn't she tell me?”
Ethan's voice softened.
“She tried.”
I remembered an evening in March.
Claire standing outside my study, holding a blue folder.
“Daniel, I need you to look at something.”
I had been preparing for a conference call.
“Tomorrow.”
“It can't wait.”
“Claire, please. Not everything is an emergency.”
She had stood there for several seconds.
Then quietly closed the folder.
I never asked about it again.
The memory made me nauseous.
“What happened to the investigation?” I asked.
“It continued without you. And now federal authorities have requested records.”
I stood.
“Federal authorities?”
“Daniel, this isn't just an accounting problem.”
Before I could answer, another call appeared.
Madison.
I rejected it.
She called again.
Then a message arrived.
We need to talk. You have no idea what Claire did.
I stared at those words.
I had spent months believing Madison understood me.
Now I wondered whether she had understood my company better than I did.
I called her.
“Daniel,” she answered quickly. “Finally.”
“What do you know about Riverside?”
Silence.
“Why are you asking?”
“Answer me.”
“It's a complicated project.”
“Did you approve consulting payments?”
“Some.”
“To whom?”
“Daniel, this isn't a conversation we should have over the phone.”
“Then tell me one thing. Did you know Claire was investigating those payments?”
A breath.
“Your wife was becoming obsessive.”
The word infuriated me.
“Former wife.”
“Fine. Your former wife.”
“Was she right?”
Madison's tone changed.
“Be careful.”
I stood still.
“What?”
“You built an empire, Daniel. People made decisions for you. Some decisions weren't pretty.”
“Did you steal money?”
She laughed once.
“You really don't understand what's happening.”
“Explain it.”
“Claire didn't just divorce you. She took something.”
“What did she take?”
“Evidence.”
My pulse accelerated.
“Of what?”
Madison lowered her voice.
“Something that could destroy Morgan Holdings.”
Then she hung up.
I immediately called Marcus.
He listened without interrupting.
When I finished, he asked a question I hadn't considered.
“Who benefits if Daniel Morgan is charged with fraud?”
“Competitors.”
“Who inside the company benefits?”
I thought of the executive hierarchy.
My company had grown rapidly over the previous five years.
Too rapidly, perhaps.
One man had overseen almost every major expansion.
Victor Hale.
Forty-six.
Chief operating officer.
My business partner for eleven years.
The man I trusted to manage operations while I traveled.
“He would become interim CEO,” I said.
Marcus didn't answer.
I continued.
“Victor.”
“Possibly. But don't accuse anyone without evidence.”
My apartment doorbell rang.
I checked the security monitor.
Victor stood outside.
Wearing a navy suit.
Holding a leather briefcase.
I had not invited him.
“Marcus,” I whispered, “he's here.”
“Don't discuss the investigation.”
I opened the door.
Victor smiled.
“Rough day?”
I didn't answer.
He stepped inside without waiting for an invitation.
“I heard about Claire.”
“From whom?”
“People talk.”
He glanced toward the bedroom.
“Madison told me you two had a disagreement.”
My stomach tightened.
“Madison called you?”
Victor smiled again.
“She works for me operationally, Daniel. Of course she called.”
I suddenly noticed how comfortable he looked.
As though he already owned the room.
He placed his briefcase on the counter.
“We need to discuss your position.”
“My position?”
“With the company.”
I stared at him.
Victor opened the briefcase and removed a document.
“There's an emergency board meeting tomorrow morning.”
“Why?”
“Financial misconduct allegations.”
I looked at the document.
My name appeared beneath the heading.
Notice of Proposed Removal of Chief Executive Officer.
“You arranged this?”
Victor's expression remained pleasant.
“I'm trying to protect what we built.”
Then he leaned closer.
“And Daniel, before you do anything foolish, you should know something about Claire.”
I stopped breathing.
“What?”
Victor's smile vanished.
“She didn't leave Chicago because she was heartbroken.”
He placed a photograph on the counter.
Claire stood outside a courthouse beside an unfamiliar man.
The photograph was dated three days earlier.
May you like
Victor tapped the man's face.
“She left because she found someone who could help her bring you down.”
