I looked toward Daniel.
“Could Graham have done this without my knowledge?”
He answered carefully.
“Potentially. But we need the records before reaching that conclusion.”
I nodded.
Then said something that frightened me.
“If I signed something I didn't understand, I need to know that too.”
Daniel studied me.
For a moment, his expression softened.
“That's the right approach.”
We didn't instruct anyone to conceal documents.
We didn't rewrite the company's accounts to make them look cleaner.
And we didn't allow employees who might be involved in the disputed transactions to control the independent review.
Graham was placed on leave while the investigation proceeded.
He called me within an hour.
I was sitting in Angela's kitchen when his name appeared on my screen.
For a moment, I stared.
Then let the call go to voicemail.
He called again.
Then sent a message.
James, this is getting out of control. We need to speak privately before the lawyers destroy everything we've built.
I showed it to Daniel.
He advised me not to engage in an informal confrontation.
I agreed.
A few minutes later, Graham sent another message.
Vanessa is frightened. She made mistakes, but Claire wasn't innocent in this situation either.
I felt my chest tighten.
Claire wasn't innocent.
I stared at the sentence.
For two years, Graham had spoken about my late wife with affection and respect.
He'd praised her charitable work.
Attended memorial events.
And donated money to the foundation established in her honor.
Now he was suggesting she bore responsibility for whatever had happened.
I wanted to call him.
Demand an explanation.
Ask how he could speak about her that way.
Instead, I preserved the message and gave it to the investigators.
Later, I learned that Graham had also contacted several foundation employees, attempting to persuade them that the accounting review was unnecessary.
That only intensified the scrutiny.
The third week after the television incident, Mara called with an update.
She asked me to come to her office.
When I arrived, she was sitting beside another investigator and a digital-forensics specialist.
For a moment, my heart began pounding.
Mara gestured toward a chair.
“Mr. Whitmore, we've recovered material that may be related to Ethan's recording.”
I stared.
“Recovered?”
She nodded.
“Your family used a home media backup system for several years. We identified archived data that hadn't been included in the initial investigation.”