Page 60 of Silent Vendetta (Vendetta Duet)

“Don’t I? I specifically asked youabout this accounting transaction, and instead of telling me what you knew, you went to reporters with it.”

“To clear my conscience, because I was afraid you might cover it up.”

“Explain what happened back then, already!”

Silence.

“Look, all I know is that company funds went missing. And then your father took money out of his own bank account and deposited it into the business account to compensate for it.”

Why would Dad do that? “How much money?”

“Five million.”

“What was the money used for?” I asked.

“I never knew back then, and I don’t know now, because they moved the business money to an offshore account. From there, it could have been moved anywhere, and it would’ve been untraceable.”

“So, someone stole five million from the business.”

“It would appear so.”

A rock dropped into my intestines.

“My father was a billionaire. My whole family was a billionaire by that point. If someone had stolen from the company, it wouldn’t have been my father. And if hedidsteal, he wouldn’t have reimbursed the company back.”

“My brother was a good man,” Uncle Alexander chimed in, his neck red from frustration. “If he had any kind of mismanagement of money, it would have been an innocent mistake on his part.”

Jeff sighed. “Look, your dad wouldn’t tell me the exact reason he refunded that money. But, if you ask me, he might’ve had an inkling about who took it. Embezzlement—it’s no small matter. Maybe he was trying to cover for someone. He was adamant, you know? Told me in no uncertain terms to keep it under wraps. Even made me promise not to breathe a word about it to anyone.”

“And keeping that secret weighed on your conscience.”

“It did.”

I tugged at my tie. “If this bothered you so much, why didn’t you tell me?”

No response.

“Or say something about this back then?” I demanded.

Jeff let out a long breath.

“I did consider turning your father in, but…”

He stopped talking.

“But what, Jeff?”

I squeezed my phone tighter.

“But three days after he moved the money,” Jeff said, “he was dead.”

CHAPTER28

Hunter

Asharp, cutting edge crept into my voice, making each word pointed. “And you didn’t think that was something the cops should know about?”

In all the police reports, never once was anything mentioned about missing money.

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