Jonathan's POV
Apartment - Early Morning
Yesterday was a little hard day for me.
I got called by Adrian's principal.
Though it's not the first time.
I often went to pick him up.
But yesterday,
When he called me uncle,
I didn't feel bad.
But the look in his eyes…
When he called me uncle, his eyes were so…empty.
Ever since he began to talk, today was the first time I saw him look down.
He was always confident about what he said.
And why not Fredrick was raising him to be an heir…
But now I am beginning to wonder…
Become the heir of…
"Mine or theirs…"
Today I also understood why I used to feel uncomfortable when he would call me dad.
Apart from this…
The past few weeks have been hectic.
Lots of things were uncovered.
Blue Heart was finally back to its owner, Daniel.
My mother's relics were in safe hands.
My suspicion on Imelda proved to be right.
Compared to before, I was more focused.
Today I was reviewing the financial audit results.
I brought them home so I could review them in peace.
I lay the reports on the table.
I spent the next two hours reviewing them.
Verifying the timestamps, signatures, who authorized them.
I had marked countless discrepancies…
Each one linked one way or another to Veronica.
I ran my hands through my hair.
"What should I do?"
"How do I find out how much of these actually went to her?"
"Yes, " I said, recalling.
"Veronica's accounts,"
"She has closed them, but I'm sure the manager will give me the statements that I need."
I called the manager and had him send me her past seven years' statements.
I opened the email and downloaded the files.
I ran my hands through my hairs on seeing so many pages.
Another two years and…
I had facts in front of me.
During the time Veronica did the deliveries, she was listed as a senior staff.
According to the Harmon Designs rules, a senior staff was entitled to monthly pay, monthly bonus, free medical and company travel.
I made a checklist based on this.
I stared at the checklist,
Monthly Pay: stated was Hundred thousand
Monthly bonus: bills added.
Free medical: bills added.
Company travel: she was given a car.
This checklist was of what should have happened in contrast to what really happened.
My jaw tightened.
Monthly pay, she only received a hundred dollars for the last four months she worked in front of me.
The previous payments…
Never reached her bank account.
Monthly bonuses are routed to other channels.
Again, she never received them.
Medical bills: all random check-ups.
She was clearly malnourished. Her blood count was also less.
Company travel: she used her own car, paid for petrol. Never had any other car.
Her salary was logged, but had an irregular disbursement.
The reason stated was:
Absence.
Meaning she took an absence, which even she had, it must have been Imelda.
And this wasn't one or two months.
It was months on the go.
Blank.
I began to review them over again.
According to the reports, Imelda was paying her one hundred thousand dollars a month.
Veronica only got a hundred dollars alternate month. And the last four months..
Regularly.
Calculating the amount she should have gotten…
Veronica would never lack money.
I recalled the bills piled up on the dining table.
Phone calls from Janet's school saying her fees were due.
Because, money was the one thing she never had.
I literally wanted to slap myself when I saw the profit that I made from Harmon Designs,
That I told Imelda to deposit in Veronica's account….
Was never deposited.
Veronica didn't even receive the money I sent her through Imelda.
Most of the funds were routed through secondary accounts that had no connection to Veronica.
Meaning they went to someone else.
And some of them were Harmon channels paid to officials to close their cases.
My eyes shot wide open as I found a folder labelled "Veronica Expense Log"
"Veronica expense log?" I said.
"Since when did employees have expense logs?"
I picked it and went through the content.
Mostly bills.
Gucci handbags.
Channel gowns.
Dior perfume.
Plots and apartments on her name.
All together settled the missing pay from her account.
They were purchased under her name, but delivery was by Harmon Estate.
"Imelda, you're so vicious,"
"You actually used her name in frauds,"
"You should have added lego, Disney World, I'd have believed."
"Veronica buy handbags, gowns, jewelry over Janet…"
"Never."
"And all of these things…"
"She never used them."
"But now…you'll personally come over here and put them in her room."
A thought crossed my mind..
"Veronica, I hope you didn't leave cause of this. Did you think you'd get caught for all this?"
"Oh, Veronica if only you'd have spoken to me,"
"If you had told me you knew about the Blue Heart and what she was making you do,"
"I would have cut ties with her years ago,"
"Why did you stay quiet?"
I recalled there were some files in the bedroom so I brought them out.
Veronica had kept a file of her personal records as well as mine.
I cross referenced them with her personal records.
There was no matching asset under her name as per Imelda's records.
Veronica had been staying here for the past seven years on rent.
She had no savings.
Whatever came…went out in clear bills:
Rent.
School fees.
Electricity.
Water.
Grocery.
Janet's medical.
Even mine.
This was all her life revolved around:
Meeting budgets.
Prioritizing us over herself.
There was no account growth, as her balance after a few days was zero.
Apartment - Later in the afternoon
I picked the diary I had penned down the names of the staff and clients who were loyal to me from Harmon Designs.
Then I began to call the staff who worked with Imelda for seven years and are loyal to me.
My questions were same,
Their answers were same,
She worked overtime.
Handled all high-level tasks.
Never questioned the instructions given to her.
Didn't care about her health.
She was often scolded by Imelda in front of everyone.
She never rebelled.
A shock reveal,
The reason she didn't eat during lunch…
Was because she wasn't allowed to.
Only when she used to eat with me, Imelda would not scold her.
Probably afraid I'd find out.
So she let her eat in front of me to show Veronica is fine at work.
Or maybe she used me as a shield to cover.
To Imelda the times Veronica ate with me must be sufficient to keep her alive.
"Thanks," I said to the last caller, and disconnected.
"How come I didn't notice?"
"From the beginning you've been plotting to make her leave me…"
"And you succeeded,"
"Not for too long,"
"As I will soon get her back, and you,"
"Will pay a thousand folds."
I picked Veronica's folder again.
I flipped the documents hoping maybe I'd find something else.
Then…
My hand paused.
"A contract?"
I removed it out of the file.
"What the hell?"
Anger boiled inside of me as this was anything but a contract.
It was a self signed acceptance to being controlled.
There were clauses restricting her authority.
I read a few…
"She could tell the client to sign as she waits."
"But she cannot question the document, client, destination.."
"Even if it's a bar, casino."
"Did Veronica deliver at these places at night?"
I recalled Sanders incident.
"He did that in front of me…"
My blood boiled at the thought of it.
"She was bound to decisions made by Imelda and cannot question them."
Again I read a few…
"Imelda chooses Veronica's working hours."
"She works without questioning the work."
"She is forbidden to tell anyone about the work."
"I presume that's me included."
"Limited autonomy."
"Even if she is a senior staff,"
"She has to follow orders of her fellow staff members?"
"She has to do any work given by them, including making coffee or handling any task they don't have time for?"
"Okay, so it's confirmed Veronica was assigned to sensitive documents and transfer records."
"She was the only person handling documents related to Blue Heart but never knew."
"Overall, she executed the documents, she delivered them, she brought them back…"
"Yet neither benefited from them, as she thought she was saving me."
"Probably it was because of the Blue Heart,"
"She must have thought she's helping me get it."
After another hour of flipping through her documents…
I exhaled.
"So, up till three years back Imelda was paying a hundred dollars every alternate month."
"Then two years back she totally stopped."
"In the past four months she worked in front of me, Imelda paid her twice…one hundred dollars."
I exhaled.
"So the payments stopped…but pressure increased."
"Imelda kept increasing her workload simultaneously."
"A clear imbalance between output vs return…"
"Or rather until she has no other option but to leave."
According to the reports she should have accumulated an immense bank balance.
She didn't.
She never had any hidden accounts.
She didn't have any escape fund saved.
"Overall, over the years Imelda made sure Veronica was maintained to keep going on,"
"She never paid her rightful dues."
I recalled the time I decided to begin my own designer business…
Veronica sold her paintings and gave me the money that I invested.
That became the foundation of the Rollings Designs that stands proud today.
Even though she is the real wife of the CEO of Rollings Designs…
She lived as a widow.
She should've been the one wearing lavishing gowns, expensive jewelry…
She wore clothes from thrift stores.
Jewelry…
A wedding band.
Other jewelry came to her only because Imelda didn't like them.
She was the one who should have gotten everything being the official Mrs. Rollings..
She got nothing.
I closed the files.
Packed them in a box, Veronica's included.
Not that I was angry, but because I had a precise direction that I would now follow.
The fact…
She did everything for me.
She did everything to protect me.
She did everything like a robot following commands and orders.
"Imelda never supported her…only used her."
"Completely hidden from my eyes."