Page 38 of The Perfect Secret
Before the conversation could go any further in a direction she suspected she didn’t want to hear, Hannah tugged on Dan’s arm. “My office is this way.” As they said goodbye to Aviva, she gave Hannah a look and Hannah’s face heated. They’d have to talk later.
Hannah told him about her conversation with her grandmother.
“Are you alright with how things turned out?”
“Yeah. She’s not thrilled with the way I choose to handle it, but she accepted it, which is huge for her.”
“Good, I’m glad you were able to work it out.”
“I also…had an idea.”
“What kind of idea?”
She played with things on her desk, moving the stapler back and forth, straightening the paper piles, until Dan placed his hand on top of hers. She read kindness and compassion in his expression and swallowed. “I think I need to find out more about my brother.”
“How do you mean?”
“Well, he says he has a job. I thought I might go and check it out. That makes me a horrible person, doesn’t it?”
“No. It makes you a human being. And a pretty open-minded one.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re not blindly believing him, but you’re willing to consider he might be telling the truth. And the only way for you to know is to investigate. It’s not a bad thing, Hannah.”
“Even if it’s my own brother?” Her voice was a whisper and she stared into her lap.
“Especially if it’s your brother.”
She let out a breath. Her smile wobbled as she met his gaze.
“I hate to leave this soon, but I have a meeting to go to,” he said.
She hugged him. His chest was hard, his heart beat against her ear. It was solid, steady, and strong. More than anything, she wanted to leave with him, but she still had work to do.
“Thank you again for the visit and the flowers.”
“Anytime.”
Dan reviewed the paperwork Lisa gave him. It was the fourth time he’d looked at the numbers. They hadn’t made sense from the beginning, and after weeks of tracing and backtracking, he’d concluded Fortex was funneling company money somewhere, using philanthropy to hide it. Now it was time to figure out where “somewhere” was.
“Lisa, it’s Dan. Can you meet me in the conference room in a half hour?”
For the next half hour, Dan made a list of the expenses and deposits, as well as the backup documentation he had. By the time he walked into the conference room, he was ready.
“Thanks for meeting with me.” He eased into the chair, put his files on the table, and handed a stack to Lisa. “Based on your findings and my digging, I’m pretty sure Fortex funneled money somewhere, but I’m not sure where. So, you take the expense side, divide it among your team, and let’s track the money. I’ll do the same with my team on the deposit side.”
Lisa whistled. “I thought it looked hinky, and I’m glad you agree.” She shuffled through the files. “Going to be a lot of work, but okay. I hate it when companies that seem good from the outside are bad. Dammit, this will cause damage for a lot of people, not just their employees. People depend on them for lifesaving drugs.”
Dan stifled a shudder. “I know, which is why we need to keep things quiet as long as possible. If word gets out they’re siphoning money, it can affect their grants, their hiring ability, and their reputation for years to come. And I don’t want it to happen if we can avoid it.”
Lisa nodded.
He returned to his desk massaging his leg. His mouth dried at the thought of taking something—anything—to relieve the pain, and dizziness washed over him. He waited for it to pass, inhaling through his nose and exhaling through his mouth. When he could focus again, he redirected his thoughts to the investigation and its ramifications. He hated investigating pharmaceutical companies—it hit a little too close to home—but it wasn’t like he could say anything. And he hadn’t overstated things with Lisa. Whenever a company was accused of bad financials, the effect spiraled out, tarnishing everyone who worked for the company, even if some of the employees were innocent. Add research or fundraising into the mix, and the beneficiaries of the work were affected as well.
He needed to identify the guilty party in Fortex’s structure and do as much damage control as possible.
Chapter Eleven