Chapter 3 - THE NECKLACE WAS ONLY THE BEGINNING
Margaret stared at the photograph as if the paper might change if she hated it hard enough.
“That proves nothing.”
“It proves Brenda entered your bedroom at 10:14 p.m.”
“She was helping me.”
“Then why did Andrew enter two minutes later?”
Andrew slammed the photo down.
“This is surveillance.”
“It’s your security system.”
“My house.”
I looked at him.
“No.”
That word hit harder than shouting.
“The mansion sits inside Maribel Property Holdings.”
He frowned.
“So?”
“I own Maribel.”
Margaret laughed nervously.
“That’s ridiculous.”
Gabriel handed her a deed summary.
Her laughter died.
The mansion.
The Hamptons house.
The Aspen chalet.
Three corporate apartments.
All held by entities controlled by Escalante Capital.
Andrew had been living in borrowed property and bragging about ownership.
Brenda stepped back from him.
Just half a step.
I noticed.
So did Andrew.
He turned on her.
“Where is the necklace?”
Her eyes widened.
“I don’t know.”
“Brenda.”
“I told you, I moved the box because your mother asked me to—”
“I did no such thing,” Margaret snapped.
The performance cracked.
I took out my phone and played another clip.
Andrew’s voice.
“Put it in Mariana’s purse after dinner.”
Brenda’s voice answered.
“What if somebody sees me?”
“They won’t.”
Margaret’s face drained of color.
Andrew stared at me.
“How did you get that?”
“The hallway microphone.”
“You bugged my house?”
“My house.”
He lunged toward me.
Security stepped forward.
I raised one hand.
“Don’t.”
They stopped.
I wanted Andrew to understand something.
I was not afraid of him anymore.
“You planned to frame me.”
He said nothing.
“Why?”
Brenda looked at him.
“Andrew?”
He turned toward her.
“Shut up.”
That was the first real crack between them.
Gabriel slid another document onto the table.
“The necklace was found at 4:32 this morning.”
Margaret leaned forward.
“Where?”
“Inside Ms. Cole’s car.”
Brenda gasped.
“That’s impossible.”
Andrew looked at her.
“You said you put it in Mariana’s purse.”
Silence.
Beautiful, devastating silence.
Margaret slowly turned toward her son.
“You knew?”
Andrew realized too late what he had admitted.
“I was trying to teach Mariana a lesson.”
“A lesson?”
“She needed to stop acting like she ran everything.”
I almost laughed.
Margaret sat down.
For the first time, her arrogance looked tired.
Then Brenda pointed at me.
“She planted it in my car.”
“No.”
“You did!”
“No.”
Gabriel spoke.
“The vehicle was impounded before Mrs. Escalante left the mansion.”
Brenda went still.
Andrew stared at her.
“You kept it?”
She shook her head.
“No.”
“Did you?”
“I was going to return it.”
Margaret stood and slapped Brenda.
The sound echoed through the boardroom.
I did not flinch.
Brenda grabbed her cheek.
“You crazy old—”
“Get away from my son.”
Andrew stepped between them.
“Mom!”
Margaret pointed at Brenda.
“She stole from me.”
“And he stole from the company,” I said.
Everyone turned.
I placed the forensic report on the table.
Seven million dollars.
Private trips.
Designer purchases.
A penthouse lease.
A yacht charter in Mykonos.
All paid through vendor accounts.
Brenda looked at Andrew.
“You told me that money was yours.”
“It is.”
“No,” I said.
“It was payroll money.”
His face hardened.
“You’re lying.”
“I wish I were.”
The boardroom doors opened.
Two outside directors entered with the company’s general counsel.
The counsel looked at Andrew.
“Mr. Vale, the audit committee has received the report.”
Andrew’s confidence wavered.
The lawyer continued.
“Effective immediately, you are suspended as CEO.”
Andrew stared at me.
“You did this.”
“No.”
I picked up my purse.
“You did.”
Then Gabriel whispered something in my ear.
I turned back.
“There’s one more problem.”
Andrew laughed bitterly.
“What now?”
“The seven million wasn’t the largest transfer.”
His face changed.
Because he knew exactly what I meant.
There was another account.
May you like
And the name attached to it was not Brenda’s.
It was Margaret’s.
