Chương 12 - The Locked Office
Mia returned to Bellweather three days after the canceled wedding.
The island felt haunted.
Workers had dismantled the floral arch.
The white chairs were gone.
Only faint marks remained where the wedding deck had been decorated.
Lily stayed on the mainland with Mia’s closest friend, Grace.
Mia could not bring her back yet.
She walked into the management office with Marcus and Claire.
The door had been forced.
Marcus stopped.
“That wasn’t like this yesterday.”
A metal filing cabinet stood open.
Two drawers had been emptied onto the floor.
Mia called security.
Then law enforcement.
Nobody touched anything until investigators arrived.
The stolen material was oddly specific.
Old banking records.
Vendor authorization templates.
Copies of Mia’s identification documents kept for licensing renewals.
Claire stared at the empty cabinet.
“This may answer how someone passed the bank’s verification.”
Marcus looked sick.
“These files should have been locked.”
“They were.”
“I mean in the safe.”
Mia looked at him.
“Who had office access?”
“Managers. Finance staff. Me.”
“Lauren?”
“No.”
“Evelyn?”
Marcus hesitated.
“She used to.”
“When?”
“Before your father died.”
“Does her key still work?”
“It shouldn’t.”
Security checked the electronic access logs.
No valid badge had opened the office overnight.
Someone used a physical key.
Mia thought of Evelyn.
Then rejected the thought.
Too easy.
The investigation discovered a damaged exterior lock.
Someone had entered from the service corridor.
A camera covering that corridor had been turned away.
Not digitally.
Physically.
The security supervisor, Owen Briggs, was interviewed.
He admitted Grant’s assistant had paid him five thousand dollars in cash weeks earlier to provide “privacy” for certain wedding preparations.
He claimed he had not known about any theft.
He had repositioned cameras and shared maintenance schedules.
Claire looked at Mia after the interview.
“Grant built blind spots.”
Mia nodded.
“How much do we have against him?”
“That is for investigators to decide.”
“I know.”
Claire softened.
“We have enough to protect the company.”
For now, that mattered most.
Mia ordered every financial credential replaced.
Dual authorization became mandatory for transfers above twenty-five thousand dollars.
Physical files moved into a secure archive.
Marcus protested when Mia suggested removing his individual authority.
“This isn’t punishment.”
“It feels like it.”
“I trusted a system that failed.”
“So did I.”
He looked at her.
Mia continued.
“We fix systems before we fix feelings.”
Marcus laughed quietly.
“Your father used to say that.”
“I know.”
Later that evening, Mia walked alone to the deck.
The rail ended where the ceremony platform opened toward the beach.
The height looked different now.
Five and a half feet.
Not enormous.
Enough.
She stood where Lily had stood.
She imagined a three-year-old looking up at an angry adult.
Tiny.
Confused.
Apologizing.
Behind Mia, someone approached.
Lauren.
Mia turned sharply.
“What are you doing here?”
Lauren stopped several yards away.
She wore jeans and a gray sweater.
Without the wedding gown, she looked younger.
Smaller.
“Marcus said you were here.”
“He should not have told you.”
“He didn’t.”
“Then leave.”
Lauren looked toward the edge.
“I wanted to see it.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
Mia’s voice became hard.
“You don’t get to use my daughter’s fall for your emotional healing.”
Lauren flinched.
“I know.”
“No. You keep saying that, but you don’t.”
Lauren looked at the boards.
“I was angry for maybe two seconds.”
“That was enough.”
“Yes.”
“You lied after.”
“Yes.”
“You let Mother lie.”
“Yes.”
“You tried to destroy evidence?”
Lauren shook her head.
“No.”
“The camera card.”
“I didn’t touch it.”
“Who did?”
“I don’t know.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“Yes.”
Mia stepped closer.
“Who damaged the card?”
“I swear I don’t know.”
“What about the office?”
Lauren looked genuinely confused.
“What office?”
Mia watched her.
Either Lauren had become an excellent actress overnight or she truly did not know.
Lauren said, “Grant told me he was leaving Charleston.”
“When?”
“This morning.”
“Where?”
“I don’t know.”
Mia’s phone buzzed.
Claire.
She answered.
“Grant Mercer’s attorneys just notified investigators that Grant is unavailable for interview.”
Mia looked at Lauren.
“Unavailable?”
Claire continued.
“His company jet filed a flight plan three hours ago.”
“To where?”
“Cayman Islands.”
Lauren’s face drained.
Mia asked Claire, “Did he leave?”
“The flight was canceled.”
“Why?”
“Federal agents arrived before departure.”
Mia stopped breathing for a moment.
“Federal?”
“The attempted bank transfer crossed into a fraud investigation.”
Lauren whispered, “Oh God.”
Claire continued.
“And Mia?”
“Yes?”
“They recovered the damaged camera card from Vanessa Pike’s luggage.”
Mia looked at Lauren.
The wedding planner.
The false notary.
The shell company.
Vanessa had been trying to leave too.
For the first time, the conspiracy was no longer just a family betrayal.
May you like
It was becoming a criminal case.
And Grant Mercer was no longer controlling the exit.
