“Is that a big deal?”
“Yeah. It’s one of the biggest and most prestigious investment banks out there. Anyway, she was able to figure out that Jacob’s been lying to everyone all this time, most likely with the collusion of his executives.”
“Wow. That’s great.” Amandine flushed. “I mean, it’s terrible Jacob lied, but great she discovered that problem.”
Gavin narrowed his eyes. “It’s too convenient.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s extremely difficult to find competent help for this stuff. People with her qualifications don’t just pop out of nowhere when you need them. Somebody like Kerri Wilson? Easier to win a lottery.”
“Don’t be cynical.”
“I’m not the only one who thought so. Another executive said the same thing—albeit without any tact—and got chewed out in front of the entire board.”
Amandine winced. “Ouch. Ethan can be mean.”
Gavin shook his head. “Not Ethan. The Wilson woman.”
“Wow.” Amandine couldn’t believe the woman’s guts. No way she could’ve done it if she’d been in Kerri’s shoes. On the other hand, Kerri had the academic might of Yale and Wharton behind her, not to mention that fancy investment bank on her résumé.
“Don’t be so wowed. It’s not just the timing that I don’t care for. Something about her feels off…like she has something to hide.”
“Really? Ethan must’ve vetted Kerri before hiring her.”
Gavin snorted. “Yeah. In bed.”
Amandine rolled her eyes. “Come on.”
“I know my brother. Trust me, they’re sleeping together.”
“Oh my god.”
“Don’t worry. I’m going to do my own vetting.” Cynicism twisted his lips into an unpleasant smile. “The situation at TLD is really bad. Everyone who’s been relying on the quarterly payments from the company better have a contingency plan ready, because they won’t get another penny for a long, long time. There’s that embezzlement too, although it’s just speculation at this point. But given how much cash the company has managed to lose… We need to do a really thorough audit before we can be certain.”
“That’s awful. Who do you think could’ve done it?”
“I don’t know. It could be anybody on the board…including Catherine.”
“No way. She would never. What did she say when Ethan announced all this?”
“She wasn’t there.”
Amandine gasped. “She wasn’t?”
“Nope.”
“But the company is her baby. She’s so possessive about it.”
“I have no clue why she didn’t come, but she didn’t. I’m sure she’ll get the meeting minutes via email. Don’t worry. She’ll land on her feet.”
“How about the other people? What about the workers?”
“Some of them will lose their jobs, I imagine, but there are funds set aside to help. If not, I can cover the cost of the severance packages so they can weather the storm a bit better. As for the family, I’m setting up a trust fund.” He nodded to himself, but there was a small frown on his forehead.
“What’s wrong?” Setting up and managing funds was what Gavin did for a living.
“It’s just getting them to accept the money. They know they need it, but the damn Lloyd pride. They might reject it just out of ego.”