Although he had a feeling that today was not that day.
Bronwyn stared at the top of the table. In her periphery, she could see Mo’s hands. His long fingers were clasped together, and every few seconds he tapped his thumbs against each other.He’d done that a lot when they were younger. It was his “ready for anything” posture.
Meredith bumped her elbow. “Bronwyn?”
How long had she been studying Mo’s hands? Her face heated, and she pinched her lips together. “Sorry. I’m not sure where to start.”
Cal leaned back in his seat. “Why don’t you start with what made you send that email? What triggered that?”
Bronwyn slumped forward until her forehead rested on the table. “I don’t know if I can do this.” These three people were—or had been at one time, when including Mo—her best friends. They’d been with her through everything. Everything she’d allowed them to, anyway.
Why was this so hard?
“What if we discuss what we already know?” Mo’s voice was low and gravelly. “For example, we know that Steven’s arrest for drug trafficking—”
“Don’t forget murder,” Meredith cut in. “Oh, and kidnapping.”
Bronwyn lifted her head in time to catch Mo giving his sister a look she’d seen hundreds of times. It was the “you’re lucky that I love you so much because I also find you exceptionally annoying” look.
“Yes, Bronwyn’s cousin’s illegal and immoral actions have brought The Haven under unwanted scrutiny. What else do we know?”
Meredith chimed in again. “Some of Beep’s uncles and cousins want to make The Haven a more prominent resort, possibly removing some of the safeguards that have kept it in the ‘secret gem’ category for so long.”
“And those actions would undoubtedly have a negative impact on the residents of Gossamer Falls.” Cal drummed his fingers on the table. “The whole Pierce/Quinn feud began over fears of thishappening, but Bronwyn has always maintained that growing The Haven that way would be a disaster for both The Haven and the community.”
How far would they make it before she had to explain anything?
Mo’s low voice filled the space. “My question would be what has changed recently that caused Bronwyn to reach out? What has she seen in the files that makes her think she needs a forensic accountant? And let’s not forget that she sent that email in the middle of the night, which would lead one to wonder if something specific happened yesterday or early this morning. That’s the real reason we’re all sitting around this table and might explain why she has goosebumps on her arms even though it’s not cold in this room.”
Bronwyn looked at her traitorous appendages. Sure enough, the chill she thought was metaphorical had popped out on her skin.
Meredith leaned against her arm. “Spill. We won’t judge.”
“I’m...” Bronwyn closed her eyes and fought against the moisture building there. “I’ve had concerns for a while, but last night, I wondered if my own security team would turn on me. The fear...” Her mouth went dry at the remembered panic. “I found some things that don’t make sense to me in several of our accounts. I’m no slouch when it comes to accounting, but I can’t find what’s wrong, but something is. I know our business, inside and out. I have an innate sense of how much things cost, where the money goes, et cetera. And something isn’t right, but for the life of me, I can’t find it. Or why it’s happening. What’s the end goal? Is someone embezzling funds? That would be bad enough, but it wouldn’t be the end of the world. We can find out what’s going on, put a stop to it, and move on. But this doesn’t look like embezzlement to me. I just can’t figure out what it is.”
She stopped talking and glanced at the three Quinn cousins who were more family to her than her own flesh and blood. “Andyou’re right. The pressure to grow, expand, and ultimately make more money is intense.”
“How intense?” Cal asked.
“The board is looking over my shoulder and questioning every decision. One of my uncles is getting close to the point of micromanaging a few things that he doesn’t need to be worried about. You all know that I’ve sensed an internal movement to force me out of my position for a while. I still can’t prove it, and I realize that feelings aren’t facts but...” She trailed off and wished she’d never sent that email. It sounded so ridiculous when she said everything out loud.
Mo’s voice cut through her inner chastisement. “In my experience some people ignore their feelings when they should listen to them. It’s true that feelings can’t be used in a court of law, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have value. Sometimes we know things with our feelings before our brain catches up and supplies the facts to explain them.”
Bronwyn couldn’t make herself look at Mo, but she wished she could throw herself at him and tell him thank you. He’d always understood her better than anyone else. Sometimes better than she understood herself. How was it possible that now, years later, he still had the words to express her emotions?
Meredith nodded in agreement. “Bronwyn has always been the most intuitive of us. I’d forgotten that. But if she’s picking up on something hinky, it’s there.”
“I can’t accuse anyone of hinky behavior, Meredith.”
“No.” Cal narrowed his eyes at her. “You’ll need proof. And that’s why you need Mo.” He turned his attention to Mo. “Can you evaluate her accounts and find what’s got her spooked?”
Mo nodded slowly. “The Haven’s system is solid. Unless things have changed, the main computers are on a private, hardwired network.”
“We’ve stayed at the forefront of cybersecurity. We’ve had to.” Bronwyn tapped her phone. “We have cell phones, and they have Wi-Fi, but I’m the CEO and even I can’t access our records unless I’m in my office or the accounting office. We guard our guests’ privacy. Those records include extremely personal data that could, in some cases, ruin careers if they got out.”
“So what you’re saying is that in order for Mo to check out your system, he’d physically have to be on-site.” Cal walked over to his desk and grabbed a thermos. “That might be difficult to explain.”
“Not really.” Meredith grinned.
