“Okay!” Lily squealed, her worries immediately forgotten as she hurried toward the thatched resort pavilion.
The moment she was out of earshot, the warm tropical sun suddenly felt suffocating.
I looked back down the shoreline.
Julian was clapping Jim on the shoulder and giving him an aggressive, commanding nod—the same expression he used with junior associates when demanding results.
Jim looked miserable, running one hand over his face before staring toward the ocean.
I didn’t march over to them.
I didn’t scream.
Years of working as a corporate auditor had taught me one fundamental rule: when you discover fraud, you never confront the suspects until you hold the physical proof.
If I confronted Julian now, he would laugh it off, claim it was some secret investment club, move the funds, and turn my brother against me.
Instead, I turned around and walked calmly toward the resort elevators.
Our suite was on the fourth floor overlooking the ocean.
The air inside was cool and smelled of fresh lilies and sea salt.
I locked the door behind me, walked directly into the master bedroom, and dropped to my knees beside the king-sized bed.
I lifted the heavy white duvet hanging over the frame and looked underneath.
There, tucked far back against the mahogany baseboard, was a heavy, fireproof black metal locking case with a digital keypad.
I reached forward and touched the cold steel.
Julian used the same six-digit PIN sequence for everything—his phone, his office safe, his laptop.
I entered our wedding anniversary: 0-6-1-4-1-8.
Click.
The heavy latch released with a quiet hydraulic pop.
I lifted the lid, and my breath caught in my throat.
Inside weren’t merely stacks of wrapped hundred-dollar bills—although there were easily two hundred thousand dollars in cash neatly bundled in bands.
Beneath the cash were three black leather-bound ledgers, a satellite phone, six offshore banking tokens, and a thick stack of printed bills of lading stamped with the official seal of the Chicago Port Authority—signed directly by my brother, Jim.
I opened the first ledger.
