“Vera, I need everything.
Every document, every email, every transfer.
Can you get it?”
“I already have most of it saved.
I had a feeling something wasn’t right when I saw the loan application last month, so I made copies.”
I turned to look at her.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I wasn’t sure.
And I didn’t want to accuse him without proof.
I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.
You did the right thing.
Now we finish this.”
We worked until midnight, organizing the evidence.
By the time I left, I had a folder full of documents and a plan.
I was going to confront Dunstan at the office the next morning, but when I walked in at eight o’clock, someone was already waiting for me.
Keely was sitting in the reception area, her eyes red from crying.
She stood up when she saw me.
“Azalea, I need to talk to you.”
Company and the Woman Who Knew Nothing
I stopped in the doorway, my hand still on the glass.
Of all the people I expected to see in my office, Keely was the last.
She looked different from the woman at the clinic.
Her hair was pulled back, no makeup, and she was wearing jeans and a plain sweater.
She looked young and scared.
“What are you doing here?”
I asked.
“I need to tell you the truth.
About everything.”
I didn’t move.
“Why should I believe anything you say?”
“Because I didn’t know about you until yesterday.
I swear.”
She took a step closer, and I saw her hands trembling.
“Dunstan told me he was divorced.
He said the company was his, that he built it from nothing.
He showed me documents with his name on them.”
“He forged those documents.”
“I know that now.
But I didn’t then.
I thought he was a successful businessman who wanted to help me.”
“Help you?”
She looked down at the floor.
“I was working as a receptionist at a dental office.
I had debt, and he offered to pay for my surgeries.
He said it was an investment in me.”
I felt a strange mix of anger and pity.
“He used my money to pay for your surgeries.”
“I know.
And I’m sorry.
If I had known, I never would have accepted.”
I walked past her to my office door and opened it.
“Come in.
Tell me everything.”
She sat in the chair across from my desk, and I stayed standing.
“When did you meet him?”
“Two years ago.
At a coffee shop near my apartment.
He was charming and generous.
He said he was going through a divorce and needed someone to talk to.”
“And you believed him.”
“I did.
He told me his ex-wife was trying to take his company, that she was bitter and vindictive.”
I almost laughed.
“That’s me.
The bitter ex-wife who built the company he claims is his.”
Keely nodded.
“I know that now.
Yesterday, when you showed up at the clinic, everything clicked.
He had been lying to both of us.”
She reached into her purse and pulled out a folded piece of paper.
“This is a list of all the payments he made for me.
Rent, car, surgeries.
I kept a record because I felt guilty about accepting so much.”
I took the paper and scanned it.
“You kept a record?”
“I’m not a bad person, Azalea.
I was just stupid and desperate.”
I sat down and looked at her.
“Why are you telling me this now?”
“Because he’s going to do it again.
He’s already moved money out of your main account.
I heard him on the phone last night.
He’s planning to leave the country.”
My blood ran cold.
“What do you mean?”
“He told someone on the phone that he had a backup plan.
That he was going to take what was his and disappear.”
I stood up and grabbed my phone.
“Vera!
Get in here!”
Vera appeared in the doorway.
“I need you to call the bank and freeze all accounts immediately.
Then call our lawyer.
We’re filing a lawsuit against Dunstan today.”
Vera nodded and rushed out.
I turned back to Keely.
“You said you have a record of everything.
Will you testify?”
She hesitated.
“If you help me get out safely.
I’m scared of him.”
“Then we’ll protect you.
But first, we stop him.”
She nodded.
“I’ll do it.”
I looked at the folder on my desk, the one filled with evidence of Dunstan’s theft.
I had been devastated just twenty-four hours ago.
Now I was furious, and I was ready.
But as I reached for my phone to call the lawyer, it rang first.
It was Dunstan.
I let it go to voicemail, then listened.
“Azalea, I know you’re angry.
