Page 33 of Justice Denied

“What? You think he made a copy of the company financial statements? Wouldn’t that be—”

“Unethical?” Mr. Warner re-entered, a bulging accordion folder in his hands. “Perhaps a little, but I had Peter’s permission to examine the documents, and my gut said something wasn’t right. My initial perusal showed nothing out of the ordinary, which was what I told Peter. By then, he expressed regret in bringing me in and said he was satisfied everything was as it should be. I returned the documents but not until I’d made a copy.”

“Why?” Seth asked the question burning in Jetta’s mind. Mr. Warner exuded integrity and had been a higher up at FinCEN for years before his retirement.

“Because I wasn’t convinced of Ainsley’s guilt for one.” Mr. Warner retook his seat, setting the folder on his lap. “And because the financial documents were a little too neat. Nothing I could point a finger at, but something about them didn’t sit well with me.”

“What did you find?” Jetta gazed at the folder, praying it contained concrete evidence exonerating her father.

“Nothing because I never looked at them again.” Mr. Warner placed a hand on the folder. “My wife received a cancer diagnoses a few weeks later, and I completely forgot about Topher Robotics. She lost her fight three years ago.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss,” Seth said, the compassion in his voice evident.

Mr. Warner nodded, the tears glistening in his eyes reminding her of her mother’s abiding love for her father. No one spoke for a couple of minutes, then Jetta asked, “Will you look at the documents now?”

“Yes, I will.” He touched the folder. “It will take a while.”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Seth removed his arm from the couch back.

“Actually, there is.” Mr. Warner unfastened the string holding the folder together and extracted a bundle of papers. “These are invoices from outside vendors. It’s not every invoice, of course, but I’d asked for at least one from each vendor they paid over a two-year period prior to Ainsley’s death. Would you check each one to see if they did the work or sent the goods listed on the invoices?”

“We’ll verify these.” Seth accepted the papers.

Jetta caught onto the importance of checking the vendors. “Because you can siphon off money through fake invoices.”

“Exactly. I’ll give you my email address. Update me as you work your way through the invoices.” Mr. Warner provided the address. “May I ask why you’re looking into this now?”

Jetta shot a glance at Seth, who nodded. She explained about her mother’s fresh desire to clear her dad’s name, plus the envelope that had taken fifteen years to arrive. “My mom wants me to find out what I can. I think cleaning out the family home while she’s in rehab has also brought it all back.”

“A letter accompanied the statements and spreadsheets?”

“Yes, written on a computer with nothing to identify the author.” Jetta wished she’d have thought to bring a copy of the envelope’s contents to let Mr. Warner have a peek.

“Finding out who sent the documents would shed more light on who could be responsible for the embezzlement,” Mr. Warner said.

“We can probably get a list of employees at Topher Robotics from that time, but I wouldn’t know where to start IDing the letter writer.” Seth set the stack of invoices on the coffee table.

“It’s usually someone who had access to the money in some fashion,” Mr. Warner pointed out. “I’d start with the finance department, but also look at any position that could submit invoices. Oh, and I’ll bet the embezzlement started out with small amounts. Once the person realized no one noticed, she could increase the amounts.”

“She?” Jetta hadn’t considered a woman as being behind the embezzlement.

“Oh, yes. Embezzlement of this kind—stealing from the company directly, not some sort of Ponzi scheme—is usually done by a female employee.” Mr. Warner got to his feet. “I have a garden club dinner I need to prepare for, but please don’t hesitate to ask if you have more questions.”

Seth rose, holding out his hand to Jetta, who accepted his assistance in rising from the loveseat. “Thank you for your time.”

“If I can help right a wrong, I’m happy to do it.” Mr. Warner walked them to the front door. “However, I must warn you that if I find your father did indeed take that money, I’ll report that as well.”

Fear that she might not be able to prove her father’s innocence swept over Jetta. Then her mother’s determined face, her certainty Dad had been framed, washed away the fear. “I have to know for sure whether he’s guilty or innocence.”

On the sidewalk beside their vehicles, Seth checked his phone. “I’ve got to cover the City of Fairfax’s City Council meeting forTheHerald.”

“Oh, okay, see you later.” Disappointment slumped her shoulders, but she squelched it by straightening her spine. She was the one who constantly reminded Seth he was firmly in the friend zone by her actions, so why should she be disappointed when he went to work rather than suggesting dinner with her? Perhaps because she wasn’t as indifferent to his presence as she tried to pretend she was.

* * *

Mae resistedglancing behind her as she walked through the research facility, something she did frequently enough no one paid her the least bit of attention. However, this time, she wasn’t on a mission from her boss but for her mysterious contact. After she’d sent the board meeting minutes, all had been quiet, lulling her into thinking she was once again home free.

When she’d arrived home yesterday, a package with a burner phone had been delivered, and she’d known the meeting minutes had only been the first salvo in a protracted siege. Once she’d powered up the phone, a text demanded she make a trip to R&D and discover as much as she could about Project Z. This morning, she’d easily uncovered the project wasn’t on the official list of R&D projects, which stumped her. How could she find out info about a nonexistent venture? Then she realized her position as the CEO’s administrative assistant gave her leave to request info with Ryan’s implied authority. Thus her end-of-business day trip to R&D.

---