Chapter 16 - WHAT THE FIRE COULDN'T BURN
Arthur ducked.
The pry bar smashed into the server rack with a shower of sparks.
Ben tackled Graham before he could swing again. All three men crashed onto the wet floor.
Graham kicked free and ran through the smoke, but two firefighters and a police officer caught him in the stairwell.
By evening, he was in custody.
The fire destroyed paper records.
It did not destroy the cloud backups.
Forensic teams recovered years of emails between Graham, Victor, and Elena.
Arthur read them until the words blurred.
One message from Elena, sent three months before she "met" Arthur, said: HE'S STILL WEARING HIS WEDDING RING. GIVE ME TIME.
Another, sent after their engagement, said: LUCAS TRUSTS MARIA MORE THAN ANYONE. SHE MAY BE A PROBLEM.
Maria stared at that sentence for a long time.
"That's why she wanted me gone."
Arthur said, "I'm sorry I didn't see it."
Maria looked at him. "You saw what you wanted to see. That's different."
It hurt because it was true.
Then the forensic accountant found the final piece.
Elena had not yet stolen from Lucas's trust.
She had stolen from Arthur.
Over three years, she had moved $4.8 million from joint investment accounts into shell companies controlled by Victor. The money funded the legal campaign, the board takeover, and payments to Dr. Reese.
Arthur sat back. "She used my money to build a case against me."
Daniel nodded. "And we can prove it."
Lucas walked into the room carrying a folded sheet of paper.
"Dad, this came in the mail for me."
There was no return address.
Inside, one sentence had been typed in red ink.
TELL MARIA TO STOP TALKING, OR NEXT TIME THE SCHOOL WON'T GET HIM BACK.
Arthur looked at Ben.
Victor was in custody.
May you like
Graham was in custody.
Which meant someone else was still working for Elena.
