"It isn't proof that every dollar was stolen," Naomi cautioned. "There may be legitimate expenses mixed in, and we need the source records. But there is enough overlap to establish a significant risk that restricted assets have been used for purposes the trust did not authorize." Elias appreciated the precision. The more they uncovered, the more dangerous it would be to make claims stronger than the evidence supported.
Altha sat beside Miriam, who had come to the office after leaving the hotel. Miriam had brought records showing emergency housing rooms being taken out of service while the luxury occupancy rate rose. The hotel's own internal reports described the decision as a revenue optimization measure. Yet notices to community agencies continued promising availability that no longer existed, causing caseworkers to send people to the hotel only to have them turned away.
"I had a woman come to the front desk with two children during a storm last winter," Miriam said. "They were on the approved emergency list, and we had vacant rooms upstairs. Preston's office told me the charity rooms had been temporarily suspended, so I paid for one night myself. I couldn't keep doing it, and I hated that I couldn't." Altha covered Miriam's hand with hers. "That was a failure of the people running the place, not of the woman who tried to help."
The office phone rang shortly after two in the morning. Celeste answered, listened, and wrote down a case reference on a yellow pad. When she hung up, her expression had changed. "Preston's legal team has submitted a complaint against Miriam," she said. "They claim she took confidential documents from the hotel and passed them to outsiders."
Miriam stared at her. She had copied records she was authorized to review in her management role, and she had been careful to preserve rather than alter them. Preston's lawyers were attempting to portray evidence of misconduct as theft, a tactic that could damage her credibility and frighten other employees. Celeste promised to arrange independent counsel and determine exactly what was alleged rather than accepting the hotel's version.
"I knew he'd come after me," Miriam whispered. "He said he'd be watching." Altha's gaze hardened. "Then he'll have to watch us defend you," she answered. "You were loyal to that hotel when he wasn't. Loyalty cannot mean hiding the truth because a man with a title orders it."
Preston was in his office when he received a report that the Monroe family had survived the vehicle collision. His lawyer had warned him not to make statements about people being investigated, yet he was furious that the sale had become vulnerable to delays. He told himself the confrontation at the hotel had been a minor incident blown out of proportion by opportunists. The story was easier to accept than the possibility that his family's wealth rested on ownership papers that could not survive scrutiny.
When Martin Greer arrived at dawn, Preston paced before the windows without offering him a chair. "They're meeting former employees," he said. "They're gathering bank records. They have Miriam telling them where everything is. I want them stopped." Greer listened in silence, the skin around his eyes seeming more fragile than it had days earlier.