Chapter 7
Nathan picked up the notebook.
He flipped through the pages.
Page after page of neat, precise handwriting:
Nov 12: Mrs. Evelyn Gable. $38,200 transferred to Westbridge Acct #4419. Told her it was a state liquidity requirement.Dec 04: Thomas Ruiz. $19,500. Veteran disability retro-pay. Convinced him to sign waiver while confused about tax penalties.Jan 16: Sarah Chen. $42,000. Widowed last month. Victor kept her in the office for three hours until she signed out of exhaustion.
Nathan’s fingers tightened against the cardboard cover until the spine creaked.
This wasn't clerical error. This wasn't isolated greed. It was a factory of cruelty, operated under the protection of his own corporate seal.
“Leah,” Nathan said, looking up from the notebook. “Look at me.”
She lifted her head, her eyes rimmed with red.
“You took an enormous risk sliding that slip of paper under my hand,” Nathan said. “You didn't know who I was. You thought I was a broke warehouse worker who couldn't protect you, and you risked your entire future to keep me from losing twenty-six thousand dollars.”
“It wasn't right,” she said simply, a tear finally escaping and rolling down her cheek. “My grandfather worked in a steel mill in Youngstown. When the mill closed, the pension administrators stole sixty percent of his retirement on technicalities. He died working night shifts at a lumber yard. I watched what it did to him. Watching Victor do that to people every week… it was making me sick. I couldn't watch him do it to you, too.”
Nathan turned his head. “Harrison.”
Marcus Harrison stepped forward immediately, pen and legal pad in hand.
“Yes, Nathan?”
“First, contact every individual listed in this notebook,” Nathan ordered, tapping Leah’s spiral ledger. “Before the markets open tomorrow morning, I want every single dollar transferred to Westbridge fully restored to these accounts from the Mercer Capital General Contingency Reserve. Don't wait for the assets in Nevis to be liquidated or the federal courts to process restitution. Pay them back tomorrow, with eight percent statutory interest compounded from the date of the theft.”
Harrison nodded, writing rapidly. “Understood. We can execute the transfers by 8:00 AM.”
“Second,” Nathan continued, “call an emergency meeting of the Board of Directors for Harbor Crest Bank at six tonight. I want the immediate, unconditional termination of the Regional Vice President, the Chief Compliance Officer, and every internal auditor assigned to the Central Ohio district. If they were complicit, turn their files over to Agent Vance. If they were merely incompetent, strip their severance packages, revoke their stock options, and ensure their licenses are referred to the State Attorney General for negligence review.”