Chapter 5 - His Name on Everything
Damon didn’t answer quickly.
He wanted to say fraud.
Forgery.
Someone had used his name.
But he had signed plenty of documents without reading past the summary.
“I don’t know,” he said.
Mara gave a tired, bitter smile.
“That’s expensive not knowing.”
“Yes.”
The officer photographed the receipt and arranged to collect it as evidence.
Mara kept a copy.
Afterward, Damon offered to arrange a hotel.
She stiffened.
“We have somewhere to sleep.”
“I didn’t mean—”
“I know what you meant.
I just need you to ask before deciding.”
He nodded.
“What would help tonight?”
“A ride back to Saint Agnes.
And Nora’s shoes.”
He handed her the small sneakers.
Mara closed her eyes.
“Thank you.”
By one in the morning, they were gone.
Damon remained in the library with the foundation’s online reports open across two screens.
Bright Futures had funded meal programs, emergency housing, and school supplies for seven years.
Damon had provided most of the money for the last three.
Elisa ran daily operations.
His chief financial officer, Graham Voss, reviewed the foundation’s financial summaries as an outside board member.
Every quarterly report had arrived clean, confident, and cheerful.
Damon opened one at random.
A photograph showed children smiling over full lunch trays.
He remembered approving the newsletter while waiting to board a plane.
He had spent perhaps forty seconds on it.
At six, Graham arrived in a gray coat, carrying coffee.
“Elisa called.”
“I’m sure she did.”
Graham set the cup beside him.
“This could be a vendor coding error.”
“Then we should find out quickly.”
“Quietly.”
Damon turned the screen.
“Find the authorization trail for this code.”
Graham looked at it.
A small pause.
“You’ve delegated approvals for operating expenses.”
“To whom?”
“The foundation finance office.”
“And you reviewed those expenses.”
“I reviewed summaries.
There’s a distinction.”
Damon leaned back.
“There certainly is.”
His phone buzzed.
June had sent a photograph.
It showed the foundation’s website with its staff page open.
Mara Bell’s name appeared beneath a new notice.
TERMINATED FOR MISCONDUCT AND UNAUTHORIZED REMOVAL OF RECORDS.
A second message followed.
They just fired me too.
Damon looked up.
Graham’s coffee remained untouched.
“You need to consider how far you want to take this,” the older man said.
May you like
Damon picked up his phone.
“For the first time all night,” he said, “someone’s finally asked me an easy question.”
