Chapter 3: The Name on the Paper
The walk back to the table felt longer than it should have.
Maya held the folder against her chest.
She wasn’t angry.
That almost made it worse.
I knew Maya.
When she was furious, she became quiet.
When she was hurt, she became even calmer.
And right now, she was calm.
Too calm.
“What are you thinking?”” I asked softly.
She looked at me.
“I’m thinking your family has bigger problems than whether my dress is expensive enough.””
I almost smiled.
Almost.
But I couldn’t.
Because the accusation inside that folder was serious.
Someone had leaked private donor information.
The foundation had almost lost the entire gala.
And my father believed someone close to us was responsible.
When we returned, my mother immediately stood.
“What happened?””
My father didn’t answer.
He looked around the table.
“Everyone stays.””
Corinne frowned.
“Why are you making it so dramatic?””
My father placed the folder down.
“Because someone here nearly destroyed this event.””
The color drained from my mother’s face.
“What?””
My father looked at everyone.
“A confidential donor list was leaked.””
Nobody spoke.
Then Corinne laughed nervously.
“That’s impossible.””
“Why?””
“Because everyone at this table understands what this foundation means.””
My father stared at her.
“Apparently not.””
The silence became unbearable.
My mother looked at Maya.
“Is this why you invested?””
Maya shook her head.
“No.””
“Then why?””
“Because I believed the work mattered.””
My mother looked down.
For once, she had no sharp comment.
My father turned to me.
“Jalen, there’s something else.””
I looked at him.
“What?””
He hesitated.
Then he looked at Maya.
“The sponsor who backed out received a message from an unknown source.””
My heart sank.
“What kind of message?””
My father opened the folder again.
“A warning.””
Maya frowned.
“A warning about what?””
“That the Hawthorne Foundation was hiding financial problems.””
Corinne immediately looked offended.
“That’s a lie.””
My father nodded.
“Yes.””
Then he added:
“But someone wanted people to believe it.””
The room went quiet again.
I looked at every face around the table.
My mother.
My sister.
Relatives who had spent years protecting the family image.
Who could do this?
My father pointed toward the document.
“The investigation found the message was sent from an account connected to someone with access to internal files.””
My mother whispered:
“Who?””
My father looked at me.
Then at Corinne.
Then back at the folder.
“I don’t know yet.””
The relief lasted less than a second.
Because I noticed something.
Maya was staring at one specific page.
Not the financial information.
Not the donor list.
Something else.
“What is it?”” I asked.
She didn’t answer.
“Maya?””
She slowly turned the page toward me.
There was a printed email.
At the bottom was a signature.
A name.
My blood went cold.
Because I knew that name.
Someone I had trusted.
Someone who had been sitting only a few feet away from us all night.
I looked at Maya.
“How did you know to look there?””
Her eyes met mine.
And her answer made my entire family freeze.
“Because the person who tried to ruin this gala…”
May you like
She lowered her voice.
“…also tried to ruin my company six months ago.””
