Rosalind took a few steps forward, then winced, likely because the movement had caused her ribs to hurt. “What assets?”
“Let’s see.” The man sorted through the small stack of papers in his hand. “It looks like he wanted you to sell off your timber tracts in the Yukon, along with your holdings in the Southern Pacific Railroad and the silver-mining shares in Colorado.” Mr. Holloway’s brow furrowed as he scanned the page. “There’s also a note here about divesting from the orphanage endowments and reallocating the returns to municipal bonds.”
“He wants the orphanage endowments reallocated?” Rosalind reached for the sheet of paper in Mr. Holloway’s hand, then studied it, all signs of nervousness disappearing as she scanned the page. “The lumber tracts and silver mine have been our biggest earners. What was he thinking?”
“I wondered the same thing myself. In fact, I sent a wire to Seattle just last week, making sure he was aware that your account growth would likely drop by a rather large percentage if you divested those two assets. I asked him for confirmation before I proceeded further.”
“Did he send it?”
Mr. Holloway shook his head. “No, I haven’t heard back from him.”
“He was planning to take a trip to Alaska,” Yuri interjected. “Perhaps he’s there.”
Rosalind’s head whipped his direction, her eyes widening before she turned back to Mr. Holloway. “Yes, I’m afraid he and my father are quite cross about my marriage to Yuri, but Yuri and I have known each other for four years. He’s been helpingwith my charitable contributions for nearly as long, and the two of us are much happier together than Leeland and I would ever have been.”
“Is that so?” The banker asked, his eyes moving between the two of them.
Rosalind cast her gaze to the ground, as though suddenly ashamed that she’d married someone who made her happy rather than the monster her father had picked.
It was almost too much for Yuri to watch. She’d been so strong earlier that day when they’d visited a different bank and met one of Rosalind’s friends for lunch. But now that she stood in front of Mr. Holloway, she was wilting.
He stepped closer to her, then reached out and gripped her hand. A small stroke of his thumb over her knuckles was all it took for her to blow out a breath and raise her head. “I’m also more Finnancially astute than Vandermeer and don’t believe my wife should rid herself of her most profitable investments merely because we’re married. Rosalind has done such a good job of managing her accounts that I see no reason to take over her investments as her husband.”
Rosalind looked at him, a small smile creeping across her mouth. “Yes, that’s it exactly. I assume you can see why I’m much happier being married to a man like Yuri.”
The older man sent them a smile that was just as soft as Rosalind’s. “Yes, of course I can see it. And I’m happy for you, Miss— I mean, Mrs. Amos.” The man moved his gaze to Yuri. “Do you own a company too, Mr. Amos?”
“My family has two shipyards, one in San Francisco and another in Sitka, Alaska, plus a trading company. We compete a bit against the Bering Shipping Company, which Rosalind’s father owns.”
“Ah, I’m beginning to things understand now.” The man’s smile grew even larger. “And you said you’ve known each otherfor four years? So you must have met shortly after Rosalind moved to Sitka?”
“Yes,” Yuri answered.
“Exactly,” Rosalind said at the same time.
“Well, then, it seems I owe you a congratulations on your nuptials.” Mr. Holloway sat, then gestured for him and Rosalind to sit in the chairs across the desk. “Now, what can I do for you today? I’m assuming you want your husband’s name added to your accounts, Rosalind?”
“Actually, I want everything liquidated.” Rosalind pulled a sheet of paper from her satchel, then fiddled with it for a second before handing it over to him. “I’d also like all nonliquid assets transferred to the care of Mr. Gerald Rupert at Riggs and Company here in Washington.”
The man froze. “I’m sorry. I think I misunderstood something.”
“My instructions are written down on the paper. I need my cash assets divided into three equal sums and transferred into bonds made payable to bearer, and I want my investment holdings all transferred to the account listed below, at Riggs and Company.”
The man’s mouth opened, then closed, then opened again. “Surely you don’t expect me to let you walk out of here with fifteen thousand dollars’ worth of bearer bonds. You could be robbed on the street and your money stolen forever.”
Rosalind twisted her hands in her lap, but that was the only sign she was nervous, and Mr. Holloway couldn’t see them from where he sat behind his desk. All he could see was the way Rosalind met his gaze directly. “I’ll take my chances.”
“Did I do something to offend you, Mrs. Amos?” The banker rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes drifting back to her paper with instructions. “Have you deemed me inefficient at handlingyour funds? Because if that’s the case, District National Bank can move you to another solicitor who?—”
“No. You’ve been very faithful with my money, just as you faithfully served my mother before me.” Her shoulders deflated. “Please understand this has nothing to do with you personally. My father wasn’t aware of how large my accounts had grown, but when Mr. Dunning came to Sitka, he freely shared my Finnancial information with my father after my engagement to Mr. Vandermeer.”
“Ah.” Mr. Holloway shifted in his chair. “I’m sure Mr. Dunning didn’t intend to offend you. Your father and the Alaska Commercial Company are rather large clients here at District National Bank, and we are on good terms. When your father asked Mr. Dunning about your accounts, he probably saw no reason to withhold the information.”
“Yes, I’d estimate the ACC alone brings in about a million and a half dollars in revenue each year,” Rosalind responded.
Mr. Holloway gave a short nod. “You’ve seen your father’s books, I take it.”
“No, those are just estimates based on the little I’ve put together. With my father being such a large client, though, I can see why Mr. Dunning wouldn’t want to offend him. The problem is, I want my banking information to be private, which means now that I’m married and leaving Sitka, I need my money in banks that won’t disclose my personal Finnancial information to my father. And I want the funds moved secretly so that no one at any of the new institutions is tempted to do what Mr. Dunning did and share the state of my investments without my consent.”
