Chapter 13 - The Insider's Web
The name on the wire transfer authorization wasn't a random employee or an outsourced consultant. It was Victoria Sterling—Grandmother Harrison’s long-serving executive secretary and the woman who had managed the family’s private schedule for over twenty years.
"Victoria?" David whispered, his face flushing with disbelief. "That’s impossible. Victoria has been with the family since before I was born. She practically raised us."
"People change, David, or their price tags do," Marcus said grimly, tapping a finger against the printed bank routing numbers. "Our forensic audit shows that three days before Leo was accused of vandalism at the academy, Victoria transferred fifty thousand dollars from a dormant offshore account controlled by Chelsea into a private trust registered in the Cayman Islands under Victoria’s maiden name."
I stared at the document, the pieces of the puzzle violently snapping into place. "That’s how Chelsea knew the exact layout of the security cameras. That’s how she bypassed the internal firewall to alter the timestamps on the footage. Victoria didn't just help her frame a twelve-year-old boy; she gave Chelsea the keys to the kingdom."
"Why?" David asked, slamming his hand softly against the mahogany table. "What does Victoria stand to gain by destroying my family?"
"Control," a voice echoed from the doorway of the conference room.
We all turned sharply. Standing in the entrance was Grandmother Harrison herself. She walked in slowly, leaning slightly on her polished ebony cane, but her eyes burned with the fury of a wounded lioness. She didn't look frail; she looked dangerous.
"Grandmother," David started, standing up quickly.
"Sit down, David," she commanded softly, taking the seat at the head of the table. She looked at the document in front of us, her expression hardening into stone. "Victoria didn't do this for the money. Fifty thousand dollars is pocket lint to someone in her position. She did it because she believed she was smarter than the bloodline."
Grandmother looked up at Marcus. "Have you brought her in?"
"She's waiting in private conference room B," Marcus replied smoothly. "Secured, phone confiscated, and two corporate security guards standing outside the door."
Grandmother stood back up, her posture rigid. "Let's go have a family conversation."
We walked down the sleek, soundproofed hallway in tight formation. The atmosphere was thick with tension, every footstep echoing against the polished concrete floors. When Marcus pushed open the door to conference room B, Victoria Sterling was sitting at the table. She looked entirely composed, her silver hair impeccably styled, her tailored navy suit without a single wrinkle. She wasn't sweating; she wasn't panicking. She looked like a woman who still believed she held all the cards.
"Good morning, Victoria," Grandmother said, walking into the room and stopping at the opposite end of the table.
Victoria looked up, offering a calm, practiced smile. "Good morning, Madam Harrison. I wasn't aware we had an audit scheduled for my department today. And Mr. Vance, why are there security guards outside my door?"
"Cut the act, Victoria," I said, stepping forward, my voice trembling with suppressed fury. "We know about the Cayman Islands wire transfer. We know you helped Chelsea frame my son."
Victoria’s smile didn't waver. She slowly folded her hands on the table and looked directly at Grandmother Harrison. "And I suppose you're going to believe a disgruntled mother and a pack of forged financial documents over twenty-five years of loyal service?"
Grandmother Harrison didn't blink. She reached out, took a heavy glass paperweight from the table, and placed it deliberately down. "Victoria, you always were my best administrator. But you made one critical mistake."
May you like
Victoria’s calm demeanor flickered for a fraction of a second. "And what mistake was that?"
"You underestimated a mother's wrath," Grandmother said quietly. "And you forgot who owns this building."
