Her eyes widened. “I didn’t know.”
I gave a humorless scoff. “Right.”
She flinched, then forced her attention to James. “The other legitimate company is a bar. It’s cash-heavy, good for washing money through the books.” Her gaze turned pleading. “You know that’s normal in that world.”
James’s expression didn’t waver. “Name the bar.”
“The Gilded Anchor.”
He gave a slight nod. “And the other four corporations?”
“One is Blackstone. I told you about that one. The second is a maintenance company for cleaning and repairs. It services his businesses, but it does work for other corporations too.”
“Illegal businesses?” James asked.
“A few legit ones, for appearances,” she said. “But yeah, mostly illegal. He bills way above standard rates. That’s how he moves money between his own companies.”
“And the other two?” James asked.
“There’s a staffing and security company. It employs the staff for his operation—the enforcers, the handlers, the people he doesn’t want on the real payroll. They’re all ‘contract guards’ and ‘temp workers.’”
“Creative,” James said, then tilted his head. “You designed it.”
She didn’t acknowledge the jab. “The last one’s basically an investment and management shell. It collects consulting fees and profit distributions from the others and uses it to buy things … and friends.”
“Friends,” I said. “Like cops?”
She gave a sheepish nod.
“Thank you,” James said slowly, as if filing every word away. “That’ll help for when we read through the records ourselves.”
Her eyes widened in alarm. “What records?”
He leveled a look at her. “Yours. We’ll be making copies of everything related to Gerald Knox and Harlan Properties.”
She shook her head, horror spreading across her face. “No! If I give them to you, he’ll kill me.”
“You should have thought about that before you started workin’ for him,” James said.
Her cheeks flushed red with anger. “Easy for you to say,” she snapped. “You’re an intimidating man. I’m not. When Knox came to me, he told me I was going to do his books. He didn’t ask.” She leaned forward, eyes blazing. “If I’d said no, he would’ve killed my kids. Then my husband. Slowly, while I watched.” A vein throbbed in her temple. “And then he said he’d kill me.” She pushed out a heavy breath. “I didn’t have a choice.”
A wave of sympathy caught me by surprise. She could’ve gone to the police or the FBI, but there were no guarantees they would have protected her or her family. The Little Rock PD’s resources were limited—not to mention she knew she couldn’t trust them. And while the Feds would be better, she’d probably be looking at the witness protection program. Her family’s lives would have been destroyed.
“Something I don’t understand,” James said, his gaze distant, like he was turning a puzzle over in his mind. “Why would Knox trust you when it was obvious you’d cooperated with the Feds?”
“I already told you,” she snapped. “He threatened to kill my family if I betrayed him in any way.” Contempt filled her eyes. “I worked with the Feds after J.R. was killed, and I don’t trust them. At. All. If you hand this over to them, I might as well kill my family and then myself before Knox gets to us.”
I barely restrained a gasp, but she was right about one thing. Knox would make her pay.
James blew out a slow breath, some of the tension bleeding from his shoulders. “Why didn’t you tell me any of this when I stopped by yesterday?”
“Tell you I’m doing the books for the man you’re looking for?” Her laugh was humorless. “That would’ve put me in the same danger. With even less hope for protection.”
He sat back, resting his hand on his knee. “I can protect you. But it may not be the protection you want.”
Her face drained. “What does that mean?”
“To be clear,” he said evenly. “I’m taking those files. And I’ll be handing them to the Feds.”
