Chapter 5 - WHERE BRANDON WENT WHEN THE MONEY STOPPED
Brandon did not go far.
He went to Carlsbad.
To Seabright.
Gwen found him sitting inside an unfinished model apartment overlooking a construction site that had barely moved in six months.
Concrete shells.
Wrapped windows.
Silent cranes.
The dream he had sacrificed everything to protect looked abandoned.
Andrea told Gwen not to meet him alone.
So she didn’t.
Thomas Dupont came.
So did Brandon’s attorney.
Brandon looked at Gwen.
“You brought an investor.”
“I brought a witness.”
He almost smiled.
“Still collecting evidence.”
“Yes.”
That wiped away the smile.
“Why didn’t you tell me you lost your job?”
“I was embarrassed.”
“For three years?”
“I thought I could fix it.”
“With my money.”
“With our money.”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“You taught yourself that word whenever you wanted something.”
He looked away.
“I built this for us.”
“No.”
Gwen pointed through the window.
“You built it because you could not survive being the man who got fired.”
His jaw tightened.
“You don’t understand what Westbridge did to me.”
“You moved your mother’s money without authorization.”
“She asked me to.”
“And you knew better.”
“Yes.”
The honesty surprised her.
“Then why?”
He looked toward the unfinished buildings.
“Because Dad had just died.”
“So?”
“Mom was panicking. Heather was panicking. Everyone expected me to fix things.”
“So you did something illegal.”
“I moved money for seventy-two hours.”
“You risked your career.”
“I thought nobody would notice.”
That sentence summarized everything.
He thought nobody would notice.
The transfer.
The reimbursements.
The signatures.
The house.
The business guarantee.
“Did you forge my name?”
Brandon looked at his attorney.
The attorney said nothing.
Finally:
“Yes.”
Gwen felt nothing.
Maybe she had already used up the shock.
“Every time?”
“Not every time.”
“How many?”
“I don’t know.”
“Try.”
“Six or seven.”
Thomas Dupont closed his eyes.
Gwen continued.
“Did Heather know?”
“Not about the house.”
“The reimbursement forms?”
“She knew I used old signature pages.”
Gwen felt cold.
Heather had lied.
Again.
“Did Rosalind?”
“No.”
“Did she know you were using trust reimbursements for Seabright?”
“She knew I borrowed some.”
“How much did you tell her?”
“Maybe fifty thousand.”
Reality:
Over one hundred sixty thousand confirmed.
“And the two hundred dollars?”
His face showed shame.
Finally.
“Why?”
“I had no cash.”
“You had golf.”
“Client golf.”
“You don’t have clients.”
“Investors.”
“Then call it what it was.”
He said nothing.
Gwen answered for him.
“You gave me two hundred dollars because you expected me to cover the rest like always.”
“Yes.”
“And you told me not to embarrass you because the Duponts were coming to judge whether you looked successful.”
“Yes.”
“Your mother’s birthday was a pitch.”
“Yes.”
“Did Rosalind know?”
“No.”
Gwen believed that part.
Then Thomas asked:
“Brandon, where is the remaining Dupont investment?”
Silence.
Thomas’s face changed.
“What?”
The $750,000 investment had been wired two months earlier.
Construction accounts showed only $410,000 received.
Where was the rest?
Brandon looked sick.
“Working capital.”
“What working capital?”
“Other obligations.”
Thomas stepped forward.
“How much did you divert?”
“Three hundred forty.”
“To what?”
Brandon finally whispered:
“Debt.”
“What debt?”
Not Seabright debt.
Personal debt.
Private lenders.
Credit cards.
Loans.
A prior failed project Gwen never knew existed.
He had been filling one hole with money from another for years.
Thomas swore.
Andrea asked:
“Any additional investors?”
“Yes.”
“How many?”
“Seven.”
“How much total?”
Brandon looked at Gwen.
“About four million.”
Her stomach dropped.
“How much of it was raised using my financial information?”
Silence.
“Brandon.”
“Most.”
That was when Gwen understood Seabright was not simply failing.
It had been financed through a picture of financial strength that belonged largely to her.
Thomas walked away to call counsel.
Brandon sat on the unfinished kitchen counter.
“I really thought I could finish it.”
Gwen looked at him.
“I believe you.”
His eyes lifted.
That surprised him.
She continued:
“And I think that is what makes you dangerous.”
He flinched.
“You think believing you can fix something gives you permission to steal time, money, signatures, and choices from everyone around you.”
He looked down.
Then his attorney whispered something.
Brandon shook his head.
“No.”
Gwen frowned.
“What?”
The attorney looked at her.
“Gwen, there is another investor you haven’t been told about.”
“Who?”
May you like
Brandon closed his eyes.
“Your company.”
