Chapter 2 - The Woman Behind the Credit
Antoine moved first.
He took the folder before Charlotte could reach it.
The first page carried the logo of Kora Capital Partners.
Charlotte frowned. "So she's a banker?"
Amina looked at her. "Among other things."
Antoine flipped to the second page.
His breathing changed.
Kora held Beaumont Group's revolving credit facility, the mortgage on its logistics center, and the emergency line that had kept three stores open after a disastrous expansion the previous year.
But that wasn't what made his hands shake.
At the bottom of the page was another company name.
Montaigne Holdings SAS.
Owner of the building they were standing in.
Charlotte laughed once. "This is ridiculous. My family has been here for thirty years."
"As a tenant," Amina said.
The boutique director, Marc Lenoir, approached with a tablet.
"Madame Diallo, the remote locks are confirmed. Payroll access is protected. Inventory movement is frozen."
Charlotte stared at him. "You take orders from her?"
Marc's answer was careful. "The emergency compliance agreement requires it."
Antoine closed his eyes.
Six months earlier, he had signed that agreement when the company needed a cash extension.
He had barely read it.
His father, Bernard Beaumont, had told him it was routine.
Amina opened the folder again.
"Bellecour Advisory. North Quay Services. Varenne Procurement. Do those names mean anything to you?"
Antoine shook his head.
Charlotte said too quickly, "They sound like vendors."
Amina noticed.
"Interesting."
Charlotte's mouth tightened. "Why?"
"Because I didn't ask you."
A phone began vibrating inside Charlotte's purse.
She ignored it.
It vibrated again.
And again.
Amina nodded toward it. "You should answer."
Charlotte pulled it out.
FATHER.
She stepped away.
"Dad?"
Bernard Beaumont's voice was loud enough for Antoine to hear.
"Get out of that store. Now."
Charlotte turned toward Amina.
"Why?"
There was a pause on the line.
May you like
Then Bernard said something that changed Antoine's expression completely.
"Because if Diallo is there in person, she already found the old accounts.
