"We sent reports."
Simone took them.
Her name appeared on the electronic distribution list.
But she hadn't seen them.
Someone had intercepted them.
She looked at Marcus.
"Who had access to my administrative email?"
Marcus hesitated.
"Greg."
The room became silent again.
Simone suddenly remembered Caroline's words.
Maybe you should look at the store's records.
Why would Caroline know?
She reached for her phone.
A message had arrived from an unknown number.
You should stop asking questions.
Simone stared at it.
Elena saw her face.
"What is it?"
Simone showed her.
Marcus stood.
"That's not good."
"No," Simone said.
She took a screenshot.
Then another message arrived.
The boutique has survived before. It will survive without you.
Simone felt something cold settle in her stomach.
This was no longer an accounting problem.
Someone knew what she was investigating.
Someone was watching.
And someone wanted her frightened enough to stop.
Monday morning began with a meeting.
Simone called Greg Holloway into her office.
He arrived at 8:15, carrying coffee and a tablet.
"Morning."
Simone pointed toward the chair.
"Sit."
Greg sat.
"You look serious."
"I am."
She slid the inventory report across the desk.
Greg glanced at it.
"What about it?"
"Eleven missing items."
"Transfers."
"Where?"
"Various locations."
"Which locations?"
Greg paused.
"I'll have to check."
"You've had the records for eighteen months."
He smiled.
"You're upset because of that woman Saturday?"
Simone's eyes narrowed.
"What woman?"
"Caroline Whitmore."
Simone said nothing.
Greg leaned back.
"People like her cause trouble."
"She accused me of theft."
"Exactly."
"You seem unusually interested."
Greg shrugged.
"Everyone knows what happened."
Simone studied him.
"How?"
He looked confused.
"What?"
"How does everyone know?"
Greg didn't answer.
Simone stood.
"I want every transfer record by noon."
"That's difficult."
"Then work faster."
Greg left.
At 11:42, he returned.
He placed a folder on her desk.
"There."
Simone opened it.
The records were incomplete.
Some had dates.
Some had quantities.
Several lacked signatures.
She looked at him.
"These aren't complete."
"They're what we have."
"Then we'll reconstruct them."
Greg's face tightened.
"You should be careful."
Simone looked up.
"Is that a threat?"
"No."
"Good."
Greg left.
At noon, Simone called her attorney.
Her attorney, Naomi Prescott, had represented her since Bellamy House opened.
Naomi listened without interrupting.
When Simone finished, she said one sentence.
"Do not accuse anyone yet."
"Why?"
"Because if someone has been manipulating records, they will know exactly what to destroy once they realize you are aware."
Simone looked at the office door.
"What should I do?"
"Document everything."
"Already doing it."
"Then do more."
Naomi paused.
"And Simone?"
"Yes?"
"Don't confront Greg alone."
That afternoon, Simone hired an independent forensic accountant.
The investigation began quietly.
Within forty-eight hours, they discovered something unexpected.
The missing merchandise wasn't simply disappearing.
It was being moved through a network of shell vendors.
Invoices were created.
Payments were approved.
Goods were supposedly delivered to another location.
But the destinations didn't exist.
The financial trail eventually led back to a company called Whitmore Retail Consulting.
Simone stared at the name.
"Whitmore?"
Marcus nodded.
"That's Caroline Whitmore's family company."
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
The woman who had called the police on Simone had apparently been connected to businesses receiving money from Simone's store.
But there was another problem.
The amounts were much larger than the missing merchandise.
Someone had been moving money.
And Simone was beginning to understand why Caroline had been so determined to make her look suspicious.
Naomi arrived the next morning.
She brought two investigators with her.
Simone spread the documents across the conference table.
Naomi studied them.
"This isn't ordinary bookkeeping fraud."
"What is it?"
"Potentially coordinated misrepresentation."
Marcus nodded.
"That's what I think."
Naomi pointed to a contract.
"What's this?"
Simone picked it up.
"I've never seen it."
The document appeared to authorize a third-party management company to negotiate purchases on behalf of Bellamy House.
The signature looked like Simone's.
But it wasn't.
She knew immediately.
"I didn't sign this."
Naomi examined it.
"Then someone forged your signature."
Simone felt anger rising.
"How much authority does this give them?"
"Enough to create vendor relationships."
"Which could explain the shell companies."
Naomi nodded.
"And there's more."
She opened another folder.
"This contract contains a clause allowing the management company to collect certain service fees."
Simone stared at the numbers.
Three percent.
Then another five percent.
Then additional consulting charges.
Over eighteen months, those fees could amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"Where did the money go?"
Naomi pointed to the account information.
"Here."
Simone read the name.
Whitmore Consulting.
Caroline's company.
The pieces were beginning to connect.