CM:
I called her a bitch.
EB:
And that was the end of it?
CM:
No … Then she said, “I can’t believe you’re my daughter.”
Katrina
FOUR DAYS BEFORE
The building that housed Aidan’s Veritas Productions had always been way too nice for a company that had never come close to turning a profit. Even the huge freight elevator screamed bohemian chic.
Every time I came here, the unearned luxury of it got under my skin. I was the one paying the inflated bills, after all. The office was so Aidan: all that surface charm—never mind the reality that his moviescostus money. AndVeritas? So grandiose. Aidan had chosen the name in all seriousness, too. He saw himself as some great hero. In the meantime, his movies had only been sold to the most obscure streaming services. The last one lost its distribution partner altogether after some of its representations had been “called into question.” Turned out people who made documentaries needed to be good with things like verifying sources and checking facts. Details. Aidan was terrible at details.Veritas,indeed.
But I was relieved that Aidan had texted back after I’d left Advantage Consulting.Okay. I do have some real intel on Cleo and the money. Meet at my office at noon?I assumed he wanted another in-person meeting in order to bring up the loan again—or rather, my inheritance, which he now seemed intent on claiming.
