Chapter 285 - 285: 285 | Unexpected Culprit

<🎧 Song Recommendation: Swang by Rae Sremmurd>

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For several seconds, nobody spoke. Von was still looking at the payment instructions on Emily's laptop, trying to make sense of the name printed beneath the beneficiary field.

[BENEFICIARY NAME: EMILY BROOKLYN]

[ACCOUNT TYPE: PERSONAL CHECKING]

He looked at her, then back at the screen. "Em, that's your name."

"I can see that..."

"Is it your account?"

Emily enlarged the bank details and studied the last four digits. Her face changed.

"Yes," she said. "It's mine."

David pushed away from the table. "What?"

"It's an old account from when I worked in New York. I haven't used it in years." She scrolled up to the document header, then back down again.

"But... I never gave Meridian these details. I sent them the touring company's account when we signed the agreement."

Zack was still on the speaker. "I have that original instruction in front of me. You're right about the account number. It was the company's, not yours. This is a later amendment, submitted after the agreement was signed."

"And the signature?" Von asked.

"That appears to be mine too," Emily said slowly. "I signed the original payout authorization. I didn't sign anything directing the payments here..."

David leaned toward the laptop. "So they were supposed to send our concert money into Emily's checking account?"

"According to this document, yes," Zack replied. "Meridian collects the receipts from the promoters and pays them into the account we authorize. This amendment redirects the payments to Emily. The seven-point-four million is still with Meridian because their compliance team caught the mismatch between the touring company and the new beneficiary. That money hasn't landed in her account."

Von looked at the screen again. At least the bulk of their money hadn't disappeared, but that didn't make the document any less absurd.

"Who submitted it?"

"That's what I'm asking them," Zack said. "I also want a record of every payment Meridian released before the hold. Emily, call your bank's fraud department. If this account is yours, you can confirm whether it received anything."

"I'm on it."

Emily moved to the other end of the table with her phone. She barely waited for the automated greeting to finish before requesting an agent.

David returned to his list of payments, while Zack began drafting a formal dispute against the changed instructions.

Von stayed beside her. When the agent finally answered, Emily gave her name, verified her identity and explained that an account she hadn't actively used in years might have received unauthorized business payments. The agent put her through to the fraud department.

Ten minutes later, Emily went quiet. Von straightened when he heard her ask the agent to repeat the amount.

The woman on the other end repeated the figure, and Emily wrote it down on the pad beside the laptop: $286,400.

"When?" Emily asked.

"November fourth," the agent replied. "The funds came in as a wire from Meridian Touring Services. A second wire was sent out the following morning."

"I didn't make either of those transactions."

"I understand. We can restrict the account while we investigate. I'll need you to confirm the disputed activity in writing, and our fraud team will request records from the receiving institution."

Emily agreed immediately. Once the call ended, she turned the notepad toward Von and David.

"They sent money to me already. Two hundred and eighty-six thousand. It went out again the next day."

David leaned forward. "Where did it go?"

"I don't know. They're sending the statement to my secure inbox, and the bank's opening a fraud case."

"So we have seven million frozen and another two hundred grand missing," he said, dragging a hand down his face. "Crazy stuff... you didn't get any alert?"

"Not that I saw. I stopped using the email attached to that account years ago. I kept the account open and forgot about it." She picked up her phone again. "I'll check the statement."

Zack didn't respond right away. When he did, his voice was much more serious.

"Emily, don't close that account. Have them block outgoing activity and preserve everything, including the login records, call recordings and the original wire requests.

I need the case number. And from now on, nobody changes a settlement instruction without two independent approvals."

"Agreed," she said.

"Until we establish what's happened, I'm also removing your sole authorization on the tour settlements. David and our accountant will handle the payments with my office reviewing any changes."

Emily had her face drop from Zack's words, but she couldn't really put up an argument, so she nodded.

"That's fine. Do it."

Von glanced between them. He knew why Zack had said it. If Emily's account was involved, letting her approve more transfers would create problems for her as much as the company.

Still, watching her accept the decision without an argument bothered him.

"And what about the person who sent the money out?" he asked. "We going after them or what?"

"The bank has to identify the receiving account first. I've asked Meridian to preserve their submission and approval records as well.

We can challenge the transfers, but I won't promise they'll reverse them before we know where the money went."

Von nodded. "Fine. Just make sure nobody touches what's left."

By Sunday afternoon, the tour's accountant had finished working through the upcoming payments.

The total wasn't as frightening as the frozen balance, but it was more than the money available in their operating account.

Denver was already covered. Chicago, however, needed fresh cash before its suppliers would release the remaining equipment and staff commitments.

Von studied the figures during a video call with Zack and two members of Vanguard's finance team.

Arthur Pendleton joined a few minutes later from New York, his usual cheerful expression replaced by a frown.

"Seven million dollars?" Arthur repeated. "And none of it is available?"

"Seven-point-four million remains held," Zack said. "There's also a prior payment under dispute. We're not asking Vanguard to absorb those losses. We're asking for an advance while the settlement administrator verifies the instructions."

Arthur looked toward Von. "Didn't I already give you five million to launch this tour?"

"You did, and the tour is delivering exactly what I promised," Von replied.

"We're filling arenas and selling our clothes everywhere we go. If we start canceling shows, we both lose. I'm asking you to help keep the machine running, not give me free money."

"I know what you've sold. Our retail numbers are sitting on my desk." Arthur rubbed his chin. "How much are you asking for?"

"Three million," Zack answered. "It covers the urgent production payments, leaves a reasonable buffer, and keeps the next dates secure.

We'll document it as a short-term advance to the touring company, separate from the five-million-dollar marketing commitment. Repayment will cone from the verified tour receipts after Meridian releases them, not from Vanguard's clothing sales."

Arthur sat back. "And if Meridian takes months?"

"Then we'll negotiate a revised repayment date," Zack replied. "You won't be writing a blind check. Our completed-show accounts and contracts are available for your finance department to review."

One of Vanguard's executives began asking about security for the advance and the tour's expected settlement dates.

Von let Zack handle the legal questions, adding details whenever Arthur asked him directly.

He had spent enough time around Vanguard's board to know that even a successful business needed someone to approve the money leaving its accounts.

After nearly an hour, Arthur closed the spreadsheet in front of him.

"Alright. I'll authorize it, subject to the finance team signing off on the documents. But Von, I want the new payment controls in place before we send a dollar. I don't want a second account appearing out of thin air."

"Neither do I," Von replied. "Believe me."

"Good. My people will work with Zack first thing Monday."

When the call ended, David finally leaned back in his chair. "If that clears, we're good through Chicago. Probably Detroit too."

"Yep, it should," Von said, shutting his laptop. "Get the crew what they need."

Emily had been sitting quietly beside him throughout the call. As everyone else left the lounge, Von noticed she was still looking at the disputed amendment from Meridian.

"You alright?" he walked closer and asked.

"My name is on everything," she replied. "The agreement, the amendment, the bank account. If I were looking at this from outside, I'd have questions too."

"Then answer what you can and let Zack find the rest."

"You make that sound simple."

"Didn't say it was." Von pulled the laptop gently out of her reach. "You've barely slept since Vancouver. Eat something before you start another fight with that screen."

She looked as though she wanted to argue, but eventually got up with him.