Chapter 7 - Uncovering the RotThree weeks flew by in a blur of spreadsheets, security briefings, corporate law textbooks, and late-night strategy sessions in Lorenzo’s penthouse office. I quickly proved that my work ethic matched my courage. I worked sixteen-hour days, mastering corporate restructuring and supply chain logistics faster than Eleanor thought possible.
But as I dug deeper into Moretti Holdings' internal accounts, I stumbled upon something terrifying.
It was late Thursday night. The penthouse was quiet, save for the hum of the air conditioner and the rhythmic tapping of my keyboard. I was cross-referencing old acquisition logs when I noticed a series of recurring, highly irregular transactions funneling millions of dollars out of Moretti Holdings' subsidiary accounts and into an offshore shell corporation.
The offshore account was registered under a proxy name, but a deeper digital trace led straight to a familiar signature: Richard Vance.
"What are you looking at so intently?"
I jumped, gasping softly as Lorenzo stepped out of his private office holding a mug of black coffee. He set it down on my desk, leaning over my shoulder to look at the screen.
"Mr. Moretti—Lorenzo," I corrected myself quickly, pointing at the monitor. "Look at this. For the past three years, millions have been systematically drained from our regional expansion funds. It looks like embezzlement on a massive scale. And all the approval signatures trace back to Richard Vance."
Lorenzo’s expression darkened instantly. The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees. He didn't look surprised; instead, he looked like a general who had just caught an enemy spy in the ranks.
"Richard has been skimming profits for years," Lorenzo said quietly, his jaw clenching. "We suspected it, but we never had the digital paper trail to prove it before. You found in three weeks what internal audit missed for three years."
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"He's going to know we found it," I said, my heart pounding with adrenaline. "If he realizes we're onto him, he could try to wipe the servers or frame someone else."
Lorenzo straightened up, his eyes flashing with lethal determination. "Then we don't give him time to react. Tomorrow morning, at the emergency board meeting, we drop the hammer."
