Chapter 8: The Thing He Thought I Didn't Know
Patricia called the next morning with a question I hadn't expected.
"Claire, when you financed the first two years of Julian's company, was there a third party involved at any point?
A co-investor, a silent partner, anyone else whose name appeared on any of the agreements?"
I thought about it.
"No.
It was a direct loan from my inheritance account to the company.
Just Julian and me."
"And Renata was already working with him at that point?"
"She came on about eight months after the company launched.
Julian brought her in as an operations partner.
I met her twice.
She seemed competent."
"Did she know the source of the startup capital?"
"Julian told me she didn't.
He said he'd described it as a private investor." I paused.
"Why?"
"Because when we pulled the company's incorporation documents this morning, Renata is listed as a fifteen percent equity holder.
She has been since month eleven."
I sat down.
"Julian gave her equity."
"Without documenting it as compensation, without a formal shareholder agreement, and without disclosing it to you — the person whose money funded the company's existence." Patricia's voice was measured but tight.
"That equity was granted seven months before the dinner receipt you found."
I stared at the wall.
"There's more," Patricia said.
"The company has a line of credit.
Two hundred and forty thousand dollars.
It was opened eighteen months ago.
The primary signatory is Julian.
But the secondary signatory — the person authorized to draw against it — is Renata."
"She can access the company's credit line."
"She has accessed it.
Eleven times in the past fourteen months.
Total draws: sixty-three thousand dollars.
The stated purpose on each draw is listed as operational expenses.
But the payments went to a vendor account that we can't yet match to any legitimate supplier."
"A shell account," I said.
"That's what it looks like." A pause.
"Claire, Julian's threat yesterday — that there were things in the company records you wouldn't want coming out — I think I understand what he meant."
"He thinks I knew about the equity grant."
"Or he's going to claim you did.
That you were a silent partner in whatever arrangement he had with Renata.
That the loans weren't loans but investments, and that you were aware of and benefiting from the financial structure."
"I wasn't."
"I know.
But he's going to try to make it complicated enough that it looks ambiguous." A pause.
"Which is why I need you to come in today.
We need to go through every document in that red folder and every scan you have, and we need to build a timeline that is completely airtight."
"I'll be there at noon," I said.
"Good." A brief silence.
"One more thing.
I had a paralegal do a quick search on Renata this morning.
She didn't move to Portland.
She never left the city.
She's been here the entire time."
I thought about Julian's voice fourteen months ago.
*Renata?
She moved to Portland.
Why would you even bring her up?*
"He lied to my face," I said.
"Yes," Patricia said simply.
"He did."
I ended the call and sat for a moment in the quiet of Dana's spare room.
Then I picked up my phone and called the one person I hadn't spoken to yet.
The one person who had been inside that company from the beginning.
Julian's oldest friend and the company's first client.
He picked up on the third ring.
"Claire," said Thomas.
His voice was careful.
"I was wondering when you'd call."
"You knew," I said.
A long pause.
"Not everything.
Not at first."
"But eventually."
Another pause.
"Yes."
"I need you to tell me what you know, Thomas.
All of it."
The silence stretched out.
May you like
Then: "Can we meet in person?"
"Name the place," I said.
