Chapter 4 - The Audit Begins
By 1:00 PM, I had returned to the corporate headquarters—not through the front lobby, but through the private executive entrance connected to the underground parking bay.
I walked directly into the internal audit department on the fourteenth floor.
The head of auditing, Marcus Vance, stood up instantly when I walked in. He held a thick blue binder in his hands.
"Madam CEO," Marcus said respectfully, bowing his head slightly. "We executed the financial freeze two hours ago per your instructions. We’ve already flagged several massive discrepancies."
"Show me," I said, sitting down at the conference table.
Marcus opened the binder. "Over the last eighteen months, President Julian has approved over $4.2 million in 'miscellaneous executive expenses' routed through a offshore shell company called Thorne Hospitality Group."
I ran my index finger down the list of invoices.
Luxury villas in Bali. First-class flights to Paris. Custom jewelry purchases. And a single wire transfer of $50,000 to an exclusive Swiss horology dealer for a white limited-edition watch.
"Who is listed as the sole proprietor of Thorne Hospitality Group?" I asked.
"Chloe Thorne," Marcus replied cleanly. "Your husband's executive assistant."
I closed the binder with a soft, decisive snap.
"He didn't just give her a watch," I murmured to myself. "He gave her my company's capital."
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"Shall I alert the federal authorities?" Marcus asked.
"Not yet," I replied, standing up. "I want every asset tied to Chloe Thorne frozen by 3:00 PM. Her corporate credit cards, her luxury apartment lease—which I assume is under corporate name—and her parking pass. Let us see how powerful she feels when the keys stop working."
