Elena walked over to the coffee table and picked up a manila folder, slapping it onto Mateo’s chest. "Account ending in 4091. Wired directly to an offshore holding firm registered under the name Aegis Holdings. The final confirmation went through yesterday at 6:00 PM—right when you told Dad you were sitting in board meetings."
Mateo stared at the paper in his hands, his face pale, his breath coming in short, panicked gasps.
"Mateo," Victor’s voice softened slightly, though it remained razor-sharp. "If you are in trouble—if you lost that money in bad investments, or if someone is blackmailing you—you tell me now. But if you stole from this family... if you betrayed your sister and me for personal greed... then you are no son of mine."
"Dad, please!" Mateo cried, tears finally spilling over his cheeks. "I didn't take it for myself! I was trying to save us!"
Chapter 3: The Ghost in the Ledger
"Save us from what?" Elena demanded, her arms crossed tight across her chest. "The company is profitable! We just closed the quarterly report!"
"The report is fake, Elena!" Mateo blurted out, the secret finally bursting out of him like blood from a wound.
Silence fell over the room. The soft hum of the warm desk lamp was the only sound left.
Victor frowned, his eyes narrowing. "What did you say?"
"The report is audited by Uncle David's firm," Mateo said, wiping his eyes with the back of his sleeve. "Three months ago, I accidentally found a secondary ledger while migrating our legacy server data. David has been siphoning off operational funds for over three years. He ran up millions in debt under Rossi & Sons' credit lines to cover his personal gambling debts in Atlantic City."
Elena stared at her brother, her skeptical expression wavering for the first time. "Uncle David? But he's been Dad's chief financial officer since day one..."
"And he was setting us up to take the fall," Mateo continued, his voice steadying as he finally released the truth. "He knew Dad was planning to retire next year. He structured the debt so that when the audit came around next month, the liability would land entirely on my department. I was going to be the scapegoat."
Victor looked at Mateo, his brow deeply furrowed. "And Aegis Holdings?"