Betrayed by Catherine Lloyd Read Free Book Online Page B

standing there?”
    Father was nervous and
it sounded in his voice. Clara had not seen him since her abrupt arrival
yesterday afternoon. Her mother said Arthur was on tenterhooks until the
shareholders had met and he was safe from exposure and possible arrest. Clara’s
unexplained return was sure to have rattled her father’s composure.
    She managed a
brilliant smile; one she hoped was appropriate to the occasion. Though she had
no idea what the occasion was. Much had changed in her brief absence.
    “Of course, I
recognize Mr. Blakely,” she said, rather too eagerly. “It is good to see you
again, sir.” She nodded to the man at the window.  
    “Madam.”
    The board director’s
gaze remained rudely fixed on the outside world. Clearly, she had walked in on
a heated disagreement between her father and the director of her father’s firm.
Clara waited several excruciating seconds for someone to speak. Edgar came to
her rescue.
    “Forgive our
incivility, Clara. Father and Mr. Blakely have been going at it hammer and
tongs all morning. I have managed, with great difficulty, to keep them from
going for each other’s throats. Mr. Blakely was just about to call a constable
when you walked in.”
    “Your brother
exaggerates,” the director said coldly. “Your family has always been given to
hyperbole.”
    Clara’s eyes swerved
from man to man. “But you were going
to call a constable, were you not Mr. Blakely? May I ask why?”
    Arthur planted his
feet before the hearth in the drawing room and put his hands behind his back.
He glowered. “Blakely burst in here levelling the most extraordinary
accusations. Twenty years of service and this is what it has come to, and from
my most trusted friend and advisor.”
    “I will gladly retract
the accusation if you will open your private accounts for inspection! It is a
simple request. What are you trying to hide?”
    “And I believe my
response was to tell you to go to hell, sir!”
    “Stop it, that is enough,”
Edgar broke in calmly. “For God’s sake, let’s not go down that path again. It
was a dead end the first time around.” He turned to Clara. “Mr. Blakely has
some concerns regarding the management of company funds. It seems he has found
a discrepancy in the accounts and has requested a full audit of the Father’s
personal bank records.”
    The danger was not
lost on Clara. “I see. I quite understand. Papa, you must see sense. Mr.
Blakely has a duty to investigate the matter thoroughly.”
    She turned to the gentleman
poised at the window. “May I ask, sir, if there will be any harm in delaying
your audit until after the shareholders meeting on October first? Mr. Branson
Hamilton is joining the firm on that date and will be requesting an audit of
the business accounts. Would it not be more convenient for you to perform both
audits at once? Forgive me if that is a silly question. I know nothing of
business matters.”
    “Not silly at all,
madam, it is a sensible solution to the impasse between your father and me. Arthur,
I shall hold back until the first of the month. But mark you—I shall want to
see everything at that point. The missing sum is a significantly large amount.
There can be no avoiding a charge of embezzlement.”
    “I would not expect
anything less!” bellowed Arthur Hamilton. “Do not presume to lecture me on the
just punishment for a miscreant who would steal from my company! But I must
first be convinced there is a discrepancy before I’ll open my personal accounts
for inspection. I suspect there has been a mistake in the arithmetic, or
perhaps the funds were deposited in another account in error. My nephew Branson
will get to the bottom of it. Now, if you are quite satisfied, sir, I should
like to have some time alone with my daughter.”
    Blakely nodded stiffly
and exited the study.
    Edgar collapsed into
one of her father’s leather wing-back chairs. “Good lord. That was a near one!
I should not like to think what would have