Chapter 12 - The Offer She Refused
The complaint described Mara as a disgruntled employee who had demanded money in exchange for silence.
Mara read the summary in Tessa’s office.
Then she read it again.
“They offered me money.”
“I know.”
“They brought it to us.”
“I know.”
“What if that doesn’t matter?”
Tessa folded her hands.
“It matters.
The officer documented the envelope.
Ruth witnessed the delivery.
You didn’t keep it.”
Mara stared at the floor.
Being right had never stopped anyone from making her life harder.
Tessa waited until she looked up.
“This is frightening.
It’s also an allegation we can answer.”
At the estate, Damon received a visit from a foundation board member named Victor Hale.
Victor had voted against holding the transfer.
He sat without being invited.
“Elisa is prepared to resign.”
“Then she should notify the board.”
“There would need to be terms.”
“Such as?”
“No public accusation of wrongdoing.
A mutual statement.
And you end this campaign against Graham.”
Damon looked at him.
“An audit isn’t a campaign.”
“You know what I mean.”
“I’m beginning to.”
Victor leaned forward.
“The foundation’s reputation has value.
If you destroy it, children lose.”
Damon thought of the taped refrigerator.
“Some already did.”
“You can fund the difference.”
“That doesn’t make the missing money disappear.”
Victor left annoyed.
An hour later, Celia called with a new problem.
Harbor Table had sent contracts supporting the consulting payments.
They looked complete.
Dates.
Signatures.
Itemized services.
Graham’s attorney had supplied them as evidence of legitimate work.
“Are they real?” Damon asked.
“We need to verify when they were created and compare them with the records already preserved.”
At Saint Agnes, June examined copies of the contracts.
She stopped at a page describing a spring donor dinner.
“This menu is wrong.”
Mara looked up.
“How?”
“It says the event served braised beef.”
“Maybe they changed it.”
“They did.
That’s the point.”
June searched her notebook.
“The beef supplier canceled the day before.
We served chicken.”
Celia leaned closer.
The supposed contract had been dated six weeks before the dinner.
Yet it included an internal event code that June’s notes showed had not been assigned until afterward.
It wasn’t proof by itself.
It was a reason to dig.
June tapped the page.
“Ask them for the original file.”
Celia did.
Late that night, the reply arrived.
The original file was unavailable.
May you like
Its author, however, had been left in the document properties.
Graham Voss.
