Chapter 5 - The Account That Didn't ExistBy the time I reached my office, the building was locked down.
Security officers stood at both entrances.
Lydia met me in the lobby.
“Start from the beginning.”
“An account was opened under Nina's identity.”
“With the $2.1 million?”
“Yes.”
“And Stonebridge is the beneficiary?”
“Not exactly.”
She handed me a tablet.
The transaction records showed two accounts.
One apparently belonged to Nina.
The other appeared to belong to Stonebridge.
But neither was real.
The account numbers were structured correctly.
The bank codes were correct.
The names were correct.
But the underlying accounts did not exist.
“It's a phantom transfer,” I said.
Lydia nodded.
“Designed to trigger an internal compliance alarm.”
“And make it look like I initiated it.”
“Exactly.”
I stared at the screen.
“This isn't a theft.”
“No.”
“It's a setup.”
“Yes.”
I thought about the social boundaries agreement.
Heloise hadn't simply wanted to insult me.
She wanted documentation proving that I had agreed not to discuss financial matters with her family's associates.
A convenient piece of paper.
A future exhibit.
Then the phone rang.
The caller ID displayed Heloise's name.
I answered.
“What do you want?”
Her voice was calm.
“You need to stop.”
“Stop what?”
“You know.”
I laughed once.
“I've spent ten months acquiring Meridian without knowing your family was committing financial fraud.”
“You think you're clever.”
“No.”
I looked at the security camera above the lobby.
“I think you underestimated me.”
Silence.
Then Heloise said something unexpected.
“Your sister is innocent.”
My expression changed.
“Then leave her alone.”
“I can't.”
“Why?”
“Because the situation is already beyond my control.”
That wasn't the voice of a woman in charge.
It was the voice of someone trapped.
“Who controls you?”
She hung up.
Lydia stared at me.
“What did she say?”
“She isn't controlling this.”
“Then who is?”
Before I could answer, my phone received another notification.
A photo.
Nina asleep in my guest room.
Taken from outside the house.
My entire body went rigid.
Lydia saw it.
“How close are your security team?”
“Five minutes.”
I called them immediately.
Then I called Nina.
No answer.
I ran.
When I reached home, the front door was open.
I shouted her name.
“Nina!”
Nothing.
I checked the kitchen.
Empty.
Living room.
Empty.
Guest room.
Empty.
Her phone lay on the pillow.
My heart started pounding.
Then I noticed something on the desk.
A white envelope.
My name was written across it.
Inside was one sentence.
You should have kept the agreement.
I turned the paper over.
Another line.
Your sister will be returned when you give us Meridian.
I read it twice.
Three times.
Then the room tilted.
Lydia arrived seconds later.
“Where is Nina?”
I couldn't speak.
She saw the paper in my hand.
Her expression darkened.
Then my phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered.
A video started playing automatically.
Nina was sitting in a chair.
Her hands were tied.
She looked frightened.
But she was conscious.
Alec stood behind her.
My blood ran cold.
He leaned toward the camera.
“You should have listened to your attorney.”
Nina looked at him.
“Don't.”
Alec ignored her.
“This ends when you sign the transfer documents.”
I stared at the screen.
“Alec.”
He smiled.
Not the nervous smile from the dinner.
Not the polite fiancé.
A different man.
“Hello.”
“Nina has nothing to do with this.”
“She has everything to do with this.”
He moved closer to the camera.
“You built a company by buying distressed assets.”
“I did.”
“You think that's power.”
“No.”
“I think you forgot something.”
“What?”
“You weren't the only person with plans.”
The video ended.
Lydia looked at me.
“Did you recognize the room?”
I replayed the final seconds.
Behind Nina was a painting.
A dark blue ocean.
A brass frame.
I knew it.
So did Lydia.
“That’s Heloise's country house.”
I grabbed my keys.
Then Lydia stopped me.
“There’s more.”
She opened her tablet.
A newly filed legal document had appeared in the system.
A temporary transfer agreement.
Stonebridge Group would be placed into receivership if I failed to disclose my involvement in an alleged fraud case.
The filing was timestamped seventeen minutes earlier.
I stared at the signature.
Mine.
Forged.
May you like
And beneath it was the name of the person who had submitted the filing.
Bridget Wentworth.
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