Chapter 10 - THE MILLIONAIRE'S DEAD FATHER|
Daniel's father, Charles Bennett, had been dead for four years.
At least, that was what the family had announced after his sudden death overseas.
Charles had built Bennett Holdings from a small property investment firm into a national business. He was admired for his discipline, feared for his temper, and known for believing that family loyalty was more important than any written agreement.
Daniel had inherited the company shortly before Charles died.
Now the audit suggested that several questionable transfers had begun long before Daniel became chief executive.
The records indicated that a private holding company had continued receiving payments after Charles's reported death.
Sarah met Evelyn to review the findings.
"Could the payments have been authorized by someone else?" she asked.
"Certainly. We need to establish who controlled the company and who benefited from the transfers."
The holding company was registered under an unfamiliar name, but its directors included two former Bennett executives and Richard Hale, the man Chloe had photographed.
A second document listed a foreign mailing address.
A third contained a scanned signature belonging to Charles Bennett.
Sarah stared at it.
"Is it possible that he wasn't dead?"
Evelyn didn't speculate.
"We need verified evidence before reaching that conclusion."
Daniel called again that evening.
Sarah answered on speakerphone while Evelyn listened.
"I found a letter from my father," he said. "It was in a storage unit that hadn't been opened since his death."
"What does it say?" Sarah asked.
"That if the company ever came under investigation, I should contact Richard Hale."
"Why?"
"I don't know."
"Then why are you calling me?"
Daniel sounded desperate.
"Because you're the only person I know who won't automatically tell me what I want to hear."
Sarah looked at Evelyn.
She almost laughed at the irony.
"Daniel, you spent months treating my concerns like an inconvenience. You don't get to turn me into your trusted adviser because you're frightened."
"I know."
"Do you?"
"Yes."
She waited.
Then he said, "I was wrong about the money. I was wrong about Chloe. I was wrong about how I treated you."
Sarah felt a painful ache in her chest.
"I hope you eventually understand why."
"I do."
"No. You understand that there are consequences. That's not the same thing."
She ended the call.
The next morning, Evelyn arranged for a specialist to examine the old documents. The preliminary findings suggested that several signatures were authentic, but the date of the latest authorization was inconsistent with the official timeline.
Someone had continued operating the company after Charles's reported death.
Someone had maintained access to the accounts.
And someone had used Daniel as the public face of the business while money moved through a network he claimed not to understand.
Sarah looked at the final page.
A handwritten note had been added in the margin.
The family has already chosen its scapegoat.
Beneath it was a name.
Not Daniel's.
Not Charles's.
It was Chloe Harrington.
Sarah stared at the page.
Then her phone rang.
May you like
Chloe was crying.
"Sarah, you have to listen to me. Daniel's father is alive."
