Chapter 5
The next morning, I woke to Marcus speaking on the phone.
His voice was low.
Angry.
I stayed in bed for a moment, listening.
"No, I don't want excuses. I want the original records."
I sat up.
Noah was sleeping beside me.
Marcus stood near the window.
When he noticed I was awake, his expression softened.
"I'll call you back."
He ended the call.
"Morning."
I studied his face.
"You didn't sleep."
He smiled faintly.
"Neither did you."
I looked toward Noah.
"He's the only one getting any rest."
Marcus sat beside me.
Then he took my hand.
"Patricia found more information about Daniel Cross."
My stomach tightened.
"What?"
"He was involved in an old dispute concerning financial records at Bennett Development."
I frowned.
"Your father's company?"
Marcus nodded.
"Yes."
Six years earlier, Daniel had worked in a consulting role.
He'd been dismissed after internal auditors raised concerns about unusual payments.
The company hadn't pursued criminal charges because the available evidence didn't establish everything investigators suspected.
But Daniel had left under difficult circumstances.
I looked at Marcus.
"And now he's working with Richard?"
"Apparently."
My mind raced.
Richard had joined Bennett Aviation shortly after Daniel left Bennett Development.
I'd always assumed that timing was coincidental.
Now it felt suspicious.
I took a slow breath.
"We need a full timeline."
Marcus nodded.
"Patricia's arranging it."
After breakfast, I joined a secure meeting with the forensic review team.
Tasha was there.
So was Patricia.
Marcus participated from his office.
We examined the payment history.
SkyBridge Medical Logistics had received substantial sums over the previous eighteen months.
Some invoices matched legitimate transportation services.
Others did not.
Several appeared to duplicate charges.
A few referenced flights that never occurred.
I stared at the screen.
"How much is questionable?"
Tasha hesitated.
"Based on the initial review, approximately six hundred eighty thousand dollars."
My stomach dropped.
I looked at Marcus.
His jaw tightened.
"That's almost seven hundred thousand dollars."
Patricia raised one hand.
"We need to distinguish unsupported payments from proven fraud."
I nodded.
She was right.
Numbers alone didn't prove intent.
But they showed why we needed a serious investigation.
The review team continued.
Several invoices had been approved by Richard.
Others included authorization codes tied to a second employee.
Vanessa Coleman.
I froze.
"What?"
Tasha enlarged the screen.
Vanessa's employee ID appeared beside a series of service confirmations.
I stared at it.
"Why would a flight attendant approve medical logistics invoices?"
Marcus looked equally stunned.
"She shouldn't."
I felt cold.
Vanessa hadn't merely been following Richard's instructions on the aircraft.
Her employee credentials were connected to the questionable payments.
I leaned forward.
"Could someone have used her account without permission?"
Patricia nodded.
"That's possible. We need access logs and supporting evidence."
I agreed.
But the pattern disturbed me.
Vanessa had been frightened when Marcus revealed the personnel envelope.
She'd admitted Richard told her to remove me.
And now her name appeared in financial records.
I wondered how much she knew.
After the meeting, I went downstairs.
Noah was awake in his bassinet.
He stretched his tiny arms and made a soft sound.
I smiled.
"Hey, handsome."
I picked him up.
He settled against my chest.
For a moment, the business investigation disappeared.
There was only my son.
His warmth.
His tiny breathing.
The gentle weight of his head against my shoulder.
I kissed his forehead.
"I promise I'm going to protect you."
Then I began crying.
Not because I was afraid of Vanessa.
Not because I was worried about the money.
But because motherhood had changed the way I understood danger.
Before Noah, I might have confronted Richard directly.
I might have walked into his office and demanded answers.
Now I wanted everything handled carefully.
I wanted my family safe.
I wanted the truth.
But I didn't want my son caught in someone else's desperation.
Marcus found me crying.
He immediately came closer.
"Nia?"
I shook my head.
"I'm okay."
He gently touched Noah's back.
"You don't look okay."
I laughed weakly.
"I know."
He sat beside me.
I leaned against him.
For several minutes, neither of us spoke.
Then I whispered, "I hate that someone used our son's presence to humiliate me."
Marcus's jaw tightened.
"I know."
I looked up.
"She saw a mother holding a newborn and decided I was easy to push around."
He nodded.
I continued.
"And Richard apparently thought that would be enough to stop me."
Marcus kissed my forehead.
"He underestimated you."
I smiled sadly.
"Maybe."
He looked into my eyes.
"No. Definitely."
I leaned against him again.
For the first time that morning, I felt a little stronger.
That afternoon, Patricia called with an update.
Richard had responded through an attorney.
He denied wrongdoing.
He claimed the unauthorized flight amendment was a scheduling error.
He said the cargo cases were routine business records.
And he insisted Vanessa had misunderstood his instructions.
I listened carefully.
Then asked one question.
"Why did he tell Tasha not to send me the invoices?"
Patricia paused.
"His attorney hasn't provided an explanation."
I nodded.
That mattered.
Because the missing financial records were the reason I'd started asking questions.
And Richard had apparently tried to prevent me from receiving them.
Later, Danielle contacted me privately through the proper reporting channel.
She wanted to provide a statement.
I agreed to meet with her alongside Patricia.
Danielle arrived looking frightened.
She sat across from us.
Then took a deep breath.
"Mrs. Bennett, I need to tell you something."
I nodded.
"Go ahead."
She looked down.
"Vanessa knew who you were."
My heart stopped.
"What?"
Danielle swallowed.
"She saw your name on the manifest."
I stared at her.
"Then why did she pretend she didn't recognize me?"
Danielle's eyes filled.
"Because Richard told her to."
I leaned forward.
"Did you hear him?"
She nodded.
"Not everything. But I heard him tell her that Mrs. Bennett couldn't be allowed to board."
My stomach tightened.
"Why?"
Danielle hesitated.
Then whispered, "He said if you reached Charlotte, you'd meet someone who could destroy him."
I stared at her.
Charlotte.
My mother-in-law's birthday.
A family trip.
Who could I possibly be meeting there?
Then I remembered something.
Marcus's father had recently retired from Bennett Development.
But his longtime accountant, a woman named Gloria Hayes, lived in Charlotte.
I'd planned to meet her briefly during the trip.
She'd offered to help me understand older company records.
I looked at Patricia.
"Gloria."
Patricia frowned.
"What?"
"Gloria Hayes."
My heart pounded.
"Richard didn't want me reaching Charlotte because Gloria was going to give me something."
Danielle nodded slowly.
"That might be it."
I stood.
Then immediately sat back down because my legs felt weak.
Marcus was right.
Someone had underestimated me.
But they hadn't underestimated Gloria.
She'd worked with the Bennett family for thirty years.
And if she had evidence of financial misconduct, she wouldn't disappear quietly.
I took out my phone.
I called her.
The call went to voicemail.
I tried again.
Nothing.
Then I received a text.
It came from Gloria's number.
"Nia, don't come to Charlotte. Someone has been asking about the files."
My stomach tightened.
I stared at the message.
Then another appeared.
"I don't feel safe."
I looked at Patricia.
And suddenly, the investigation wasn't only about money.
May you like
Someone who'd tried to help us was frightened.
And I knew we had to protect her before asking for anything else.
