Chapter 5 - THE LOCKED CASEI read Jasmine's message three times.
She claimed Aaron had been preparing for months to transfer parts of Prescott Group into a new holding company.
A holding company I had never heard of.
A company registered offshore.
A company controlled by someone called Meridian Holdings.
The attachment was a photograph of the corporate structure.
Aaron sat at the top.
Jasmine was listed as executive administrator.
And beneath Meridian Holdings was a second company.
Asteris Capital.
The beneficial owner had been redacted.
I called Rebecca.
“Wake up.”
She answered immediately.
“I was expecting you.”
“I need you to investigate Meridian Holdings and Asteris Capital.”
A pause.
“You think Aaron has hidden assets?”
“I think that's the beginning.”
“Where did you get this?”
“Jasmine.”
Rebecca became silent.
“That's interesting.”
“Why?”
“Because Jasmine Reed has been using a different surname in three jurisdictions.”
I sat upright.
“What surname?”
“Reed isn't her legal family name.”
“What's the real one?”
Rebecca sent a file.
I opened it.
My stomach tightened.
Jasmine Vale.
Vale.
I knew that name.
Everybody in finance knew it.
The Vale family had once been one of the largest shareholders in a company Aaron had acquired three years earlier.
I called Rebecca again.
“What happened to the Vale family?”
“Bankruptcy.”
“Three years ago?”
“Yes.”
“Who bought their technology?”
“Prescott Group.”
I stared at the screen.
Jasmine had not simply appeared in Aaron's office.
She had arrived carrying history.
By morning, I was outside Jasmine's apartment.
She opened the door herself.
Her face looked different without makeup.
Tired.
Afraid.
“You came.”
“You asked me to.”
She stepped aside.
I entered.
The apartment was almost empty.
No photographs.
No personal decorations.
Just boxes.
“You're leaving?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“I don't know.”
“Why contact me?”
She looked at me.
“Because Aaron lied to me too.”
I waited.
She sat down.
“My father founded Vale Systems.”
“I know.”
“Aaron wanted to buy it.”
“He did.”
“My father refused.”
“What happened?”
“He died.”
I froze.
“That wasn't in the news.”
“It was called a cardiac event.”
“Was it?”
Jasmine looked away.
“I don't know.”
She pulled a small USB drive from her pocket.
“But I know what happened after.”
She handed it to me.
“What's on it?”
“Meetings.”
“Whose meetings?”
“Aaron's.”
I took it.
“He recorded them.”
“Why?”
“Because he was afraid.”
“Of whom?”
She looked at me.
“Your husband has been afraid of a lot of people.”
I inserted the drive into my laptop.
The first video appeared.
Aaron sat in a conference room.
Across from him was a man I recognized.
One of Prescott Group's early investors.
They were discussing Vale Systems.
The investor said:
“The founder won't sell.”
Aaron answered:
“Then pressure him.”
“He won't break.”
“Everybody breaks.”
The video ended.
I opened another.
Aaron was talking to a private investigator.
“Find out everything about the family.”
The investigator asked:
“Anything specific?”
Aaron answered:
“Debt. Medical issues. Relationships. Whatever creates leverage.”
I stopped the video.
Jasmine whispered:
“I found those recordings after I started working for him.”
“Why didn't you go to the police?”
“Because I thought you'd be killed.”
I looked at her.
“Me?”
“You don't understand.”
She leaned closer.
“Aaron didn't just build his empire.”
“He destroyed people to build it.”
I swallowed.
“What does that have to do with me?”
Jasmine opened another file.
A corporate registration.
My name appeared on it.
Not as owner.
As beneficiary.
I frowned.
“I've never seen this.”
“That document was created six months ago.”
“Why?”
“Because Aaron planned to move your family assets.”
I felt the room tilt.
“He can't.”
“He already started.”
A cold silence filled the apartment.
“Where?”
“Into Meridian Holdings.”
I stared at the screen.
Everything suddenly clicked.
The banking restrictions.
The offshore company.
The secret meetings.
Jasmine's role.
The apartment.
The jet.
The seat.
It hadn't been an affair.
It had been a distraction.
Aaron wanted me angry.
He wanted me emotional.
He wanted me to react publicly.
Because while everyone watched the wife fight the secretary, money was moving.
I stood.
“Where is Victor?”
Jasmine hesitated.
“I don't know.”
“Yes, you do.”
She looked at me.
“He's not the worst person involved.”
“Then who is?”
Before she could answer, there was a knock.
Three slow knocks.
Jasmine went pale.
“Who is that?”
I moved toward the door.
She grabbed my arm.
“Don't.”
I looked through the peephole.
No one.
I opened it anyway.
The hallway was empty.
But a black envelope lay on the floor.
My name was written on it.
I opened it.
Inside was a single photograph.
My mother.
Standing outside a private bank.
The date was yesterday.
On the back was a message.
Stop digging. Your family has already paid once.
I stared at the photograph.
Jasmine whispered:
“They know you have the drive.”
I closed my hand around it.
“No.”
“They know I gave it to you.”
I looked at her.
“And now we know something too.”
“What?”
I slipped the USB into my handbag.
“Someone is more afraid of me than I am of them.”
At that exact moment, my phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered.
A man's voice said:
“Mrs. Prescott.”
“Yes?”
“Your husband isn't your biggest problem.”
“Who are you?”
He paused.
“Ask your mother what happened fourteen years ago.”
The line went dead.
I stared at Jasmine.
She looked just as shocked.
“Why your mother?”
I didn't know.
But as I drove home, one thought wouldn't leave me.
There were thirteen patents.
One billion five hundred million dollars.
An offshore company.
A dead founder.
A secretary with a hidden surname.
May you like
And now a mystery involving my mother.
Suddenly Aaron's betrayal felt like the smallest piece of the puzzle.
Related Stories
