Chapter 1 - The Phantom Competitors
The first file Luis sent to my inbox was a consolidated PDF of the three competing bids for the lodge renovations. I sat on the edge of the modest mattress in Cedar Three, listening to the muffled, arrogant laughter coming from the great room downstairs, and opened the document on my laptop.
The winning proposal from C&R Interiors was meticulously detailed, listing every custom fixture, every hour of labor, and every imported material. The two losing bids were not. They were suspiciously vague, submitted by companies named Apex Design Solutions and Summit Mountain Renovations.
I opened a new browser tab and pulled up the corporate registry for the state of North Carolina. Apex Design Solutions did not exist. There was no tax identification number, no registered agent, and no filing history. I checked the address listed on the Summit Mountain Renovations letterhead. It was a vacant commercial lot behind a decaying strip mall in Asheville.
My heart beat with a slow, steady, freezing rhythm.
Graham and Chloe had not simply overpaid her brother for luxury bedding and a temperature-controlled wine wall. They had fabricated competing bids to bypass Hayes Freight & Logistics’ strict corporate procurement protocols. They had committed wire fraud and felony embezzlement, actively using my grandfather’s company to finance the nest of their affair.
I didn't march downstairs and confront Graham. I didn't throw my laptop or scream. I opened my secure email client and forwarded the entire PDF cache to Arthur Sterling, the fiercely loyal managing partner of the law firm that oversaw the Hayes Family Trust.
May you like
I added a single line of text: I need an emergency forensic audit of all executive retreat expenditures by tomorrow morning, and I need you at the lodge before breakfast.
Arthur’s reply arrived three minutes later: Driving up now.
