The Company I Built

PART 3 — THE WOMAN WHO KNEW THE NUMBERS

Three days later, I received a call from my father.

“Raina, please. We need you at the office.”

“Why?”

“The bank is coming tomorrow. They’re reviewing the company’s finances. If they freeze our credit line, we may not make payroll.”

I looked at my schedule.

“I’ll come. But I’m not coming back as your employee.”

“I understand.”

“And Nolan doesn’t get to make decisions while we’re reviewing the documents.”

There was a long pause.

“I’ll speak to him.”

When I arrived the following morning, the conference room was full.

Dad sat at the head of the table. Mom was beside him, looking worried. Taryn and Nolan sat opposite them.

Two bank representatives and Lyle Dunham were also present.

Nolan looked annoyed.

“So, are we finally getting our operations manager back?”

I ignored him and placed my laptop on the table.

“No. You’re getting an independent review of the project.”

I connected the laptop to the screen.

Within minutes, the original contract appeared.

Then the revised budget.

Then the supplier invoices.

I went through every number.

Nolan had underestimated labor costs by nearly thirty percent. He had ordered materials at prices that were no longer available, failed to account for delivery delays, and approved payments to two subcontractors without verifying their work.

But the worst discovery was still ahead.

I opened a spreadsheet.

“These payments were transferred from the company account to an entity called NV Consulting.”

Dad frowned.

“What is that?”

Lyle leaned forward.

“That’s the company listed on the invoices we received.”

My attorney had already obtained the available corporate records.

NV Consulting was registered to Nolan.

Over six months, nearly $186,000 had been transferred to it under vague consulting and management fees.

Nolan jumped to his feet.

“Those were legitimate expenses!”

I looked at him.

“Then show us the contracts, invoices, and completed work.”

He opened his mouth.

Nothing came out.

Taryn stared at her husband.

“Nolan, you told me that money was going toward expansion.”

He turned toward her.

“Don’t start.”

Dad slowly removed his glasses.

“Did you take money from my company?”

“I was managing the business!” Nolan shouted. “I deserved compensation!”

“You were president for six months,” I replied. “You didn’t build this company.”

He pointed at me.

“You’re the reason this is happening! You left, and everything became impossible!”

I closed my laptop.

“No, Nolan. I left, and you discovered that running a company requires more than wearing its president’s shirt.”

Nobody spoke.

The bank representatives requested copies of the records and informed Dad that the credit facility would remain under review until the financial discrepancies and disputed guarantee were investigated.

Lyle then placed another document on the table.

“There’s one more thing. Dunham Development is prepared to offer a new contract, but only under Mercer Mechanical Services.”

Dad looked at me.

“You’re taking the project?”

“I’m willing to discuss it.”

Nolan laughed bitterly.

“You can’t just take our biggest customer!”

Lyle turned toward him.

“Mr. Voss, we hired Frank’s Plumbing because of Raina’s work. We continued trusting the company because she was managing it. You were given an opportunity, and you failed to deliver.”

Then he looked at me.

“Your company has the people, equipment, and experience to finish the development.”

I considered his offer.

Mercer Mechanical could handle the project. But I wasn’t going to rescue Frank’s Plumbing at the expense of my employees or my business.

“I’ll accept the contract under three conditions,” I said.

Everyone leaned forward.

“First, Mercer Mechanical has no responsibility for Frank’s existing debts or forged guarantees. Second, all work will be independently inspected and properly funded. Third, my company will be paid according to a new contract, with no family arrangements.”

Lyle nodded.

“Agreed.”

Dad looked devastated.

“Raina, what about us?”

I turned toward him.

“You made Nolan president because you believed I wasn’t capable of running your company. I’m not asking you to take that decision back.”

“Then what do you want?”

I looked at the brass key ring still sitting on his desk.

“I want you to understand that I didn’t need your company to become successful.”

My mother began crying quietly.

Taryn lowered her head.

For the first time, Dad looked at me not as his little girl, not as the employee who knew how to fix every broken pipe, but as the businesswoman who had built something of her own.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.

I nodded, but I didn’t offer him the forgiveness he wanted.

An apology couldn’t give me back fourteen years.

And it certainly couldn’t erase what Nolan had done.

As I gathered my things, my attorney received an email notification.

She read it, then looked at me.

“Raina, the bank has found another document. It appears Nolan used your father’s signature to authorize some of those transfers, too.”

Dad went pale.

Taryn slowly turned toward her husband.

Nolan stood frozen.

And suddenly, I realized I wasn’t the only person he’d betrayed.

My father might have handed him the keys to the company.

But Nolan had apparently been stealing from the man who gave them to him.