Chapter 4 - The Man Who Was Stealing From Every Store
Marcus Voss arrived at Lyndon Street twenty-seven minutes later.
He wore a dark suit, a luxury watch, and the reassuring smile that had helped him climb through my company for twelve years.
"Ethan," he said warmly.
"What an unfortunate misunderstanding."
I looked at him.
"Is it?"
He glanced toward Bradley.
"Mr. Kane was following our loss-prevention policy."
"By humiliating a customer and retaliating against an employee?"
Marcus's smile tightened.
"We should discuss this privately."
I shook my head.
"The allegation against Faith was made in public."
Faith stood near the counter.
Her cardboard box remained beside her feet.
Marcus looked toward her.
"Miss Whitmore, why don't you go home? Human resources will contact you."
She didn't move.
I looked at Vivian, who'd arrived moments earlier.
"Please arrange independent representation for the employees and ensure nobody destroys the personnel records."
Vivian nodded.
Then Marcus lowered his voice.
"Ethan, you're creating unnecessary exposure."
I stared.
"Exposure to what?"
He hesitated.
"Bad publicity."
I almost laughed.
"Marcus, employees are missing wages. Someone forged my signature. And one of your managers just tried to have an employee arrested over five dollars."
His face changed.
"What forged signature?"
I watched him carefully.
The hesitation was brief.
But I knew him.
He was lying.
"Let's talk about the employee support account," I said.
Marcus went still.
For several seconds, he didn't speak.
Then he smiled.
"That's a legitimate internal program."
"Then you'll have no objection to an independent audit."
"Of course not."
I nodded.
"Good."
Vivian stepped forward.
"Your access to the affected financial systems is being suspended pending the review."
Marcus's smile vanished.
"You can't do that."
"I'm acting under the board's emergency controls," Vivian replied.
He turned toward me.
"Ethan, after everything I've done for this company?"
I looked at Faith.
The woman he'd allowed Bradley to humiliate.
Then at the cashier who'd remained silent when Bradley ordered him not to serve me.
Then at the employees watching from behind the counter.
"What have you done for them?" I asked.
Marcus said nothing.
Over the following hours, our outside auditors began reviewing payroll and fund transfers.
They discovered discrepancies at Lyndon Street.
Then at another café.
Then another.
By midnight, the initial review had flagged transactions across twenty-seven locations.
The money was being routed through a company called Northstar Workforce Solutions.
Its invoices described staffing support and employee financial assistance.
But the auditors couldn't identify the actual services delivered.
Then Vivian opened the company's ownership record.
Marcus Voss held a hidden interest through an intermediary.
I leaned forward.
"Who owns the rest?"
Vivian hesitated.
"That's where this gets complicated."
She turned the screen toward me.
The second beneficial owner was listed as:
DANIEL WHITMORE.
Faith's father.
May you like
The man she'd told Vivian had died eight years earlier.
And according to the records, he'd signed a Northstar document the previous Tuesday.
