Rafa stood by her, quietly attentive, almost as though he was confident in what she was doing.“Nothing of mine will ever be owned by you; not the paintings, and definitely not Autumn Town.”She approached Harmon, her tote bag slung over her shoulder, her eyes throwing daggers at him.If only he weren’t so tall, her neck would not ache from looking up at him like a petulant child.But no matter; even if she looked ridiculous, her pride was all she had, and she would not yield.
For a moment, a flicker of surprise flashed through his dark gaze.The intensity that had once been in his eyes suddenly softened, and he said nothing further.
Sal and Rafa let themselves out of Cedarthorne Estate, and with the paintings returned to the back of the car, Rafa drove to the cottage in silence.
Sal had boasted about not needing the money, but the truth was the opposite, and she didn’t know how else to add more resources to help Autumn Town.I could try selling the collection again,she mused as she thought of buyers for the Art Cards from Nowhere.A few had offered, but they were only set on buying a few pieces; it would break the collection, and it wouldn’t be enough to make it worth it.
Kimmy and Hana greeted them at the cottage.Somehow, the cats instinctively sensed their humans’ low spirits, and as usual, they sat on the sofa to comfort them.Kimmy’s purrs were healing for Sal.She relaxed on the leather couch as her senior cat lay next to her, purring.
“I think we need to talk to Michael,” Rafa muttered as he sat beside Sal while Hana sandwiched her head in the nook of his arm.He had a somewhat forlorn expression on his face.
Sal fought back an old but familiar feeling.Not today, not now, she thought.The hopelessness could wait.She would try to salvage whatever Claire had left, even if it meant breaking her damned pride.
Rafa
Phone calls to Claire’s relatives and lawyers occupied the next few days, but none of them were aware of Harmon or what his relationship to Claire might be.After a day of going through Claire’s contacts, they felt exhausted and had no clue as to Harmon’s connection with Claire.
“It’s possible that he’s just lying,” Rafa said as he massaged his forehead while reviewing their schedule on his laptop.
Sal closed her notebook, walked away from the dining table sprawled with papers and old notebooks, and flopped on the couch.“I don’t know.He seemed so certain.”She exhaled, sounding frustrated.
Rafa double-checked his calendar on his laptop as he was going through his notes.His days were nearly bursting with meetings both online and in person thanks to the audit, and their partners learning about the embezzlement.He eyed the most pressing one to come in a week’s time.Michael McGuirre had set up a meeting with them in a week about this current issue with Harmon.
He made a mental note and buried his face in his palms.Rafa never thought he’d have this sort of problem with his company while also managing a looming threat like Harmon.The level of betrayal and the frustration that came with it were impossible to let go.He never thought this would come from an employee he had trusted for years.How could he not know that someone had pilfered that much money from his company?Was he always this lax?Would he have seen it if he paid more attention?What’s worse is that this oversight not only affected him and the family business, it affected Sal and his support for Autumn Town too.His parents always gave him room to make mistakes, but this one could very well be the biggest one of his career.
“Hey,” Sal interrupted his train of thought.“What are you thinking about?”she asked.
“The issue with my company…it was bad governance,” he said, equally frustrated.
“Is that what it was?Or did you just place your trust in someone who didn’t deserve it?”Sal said as she got up, poured wine from the decanter, and offered a glass to Rafa.He had told her enough—not all the nitty-gritty details of what was happening at his company—but enough for her to understand that borrowing money would be difficult.He couldn’t bear to tell her more, like how much the loss was, or how his business partners were losing faith in him.It was mortifying to say it out loud.
Sal invited him back to the couch as he sipped on his wine.“Maybe I placed too much trust in Colette…” he answered as he took a seat beside her.“It’s making me paranoid.I don’t know how long this has been happening, or how deep it goes.I don’t know what will come of the internal audit.”
Sal propped a pillow on her lap and patted it.Rafa rested his head on her cushioned lap as she gently stroked his hair.She placed her other hand on his chest and relaxed at the weight of her hand on the smooth rising and falling of his chest.
“That Harmon, I hate him,” she said after taking a sip.
Rafa looked up at Sal and held the hand she had placed on his chest.“I know.And I don’t think he’ll stop.”
“What do you propose we do?”Sal asked.“I’ll have to get a loan if I don’t sell theArt Cards from Nowheresoon.”
“Maybe ask your family for money?”
Sal looked at him as though he had said something ridiculous and then let out an astonished laugh.“Oh, God, no!They’re worse than a bank.I’d much rather deal with high interest rates than them.”
Rafa nearly bit his tongue for having mentioned her family.They couldn’t help themselves.Maybe a loan from the bankwasthe only option.He understood it was necessary, especially when managing a business, but what self-reliant businessman wanted debt?Even if it was good debt.“I’ll fix this,” he said again softly.
Sal looked at him and kissed him softly on the forehead.“I’ll be okay, my love.You don’t need to help me.Help yourself first.”
His breathing became irregular, and he blinked away the tears that had suddenly formed.
Chapter Nine
The Wager
SAL
WhenSalsatinMichael McGuirre’s small conference room a week later, she had a faint idea of what was to come.The process, Michael explained, would be a formal mediation before a legal battle.Michael convinced her to do it.The truth should be enough, so why must she attend this mediation?She thought, as she sat there, eyes fixed at the door.If it hadn’t been for Rafa building up the idea with Michael, she would have skipped the mediation and gone for a legal battle.
