“Mexican cartels? Russians?” I asked, shaking my head. “No way. I don’t fucking believe it,” I spat. “He’d never get involved in that kind of thing.”

Barbara gave me a look, a look that said he had. That there was truth to the investigation.

I groaned. “How could you let him do it, Barb? How could you?”

“Let him? I can’t let him or make him do anything. You know how your father is. You know what kind of man he is, how headstrong he is.”

“And now,” the bimbo added, “it’s finally gotten him into real trouble.”

“What evidence is there?” I asked. “The FBI and SEC are looking into it, right? What do we know about it?”

Barbara sighed. “Yes, unfortunately. When they started sniffing around, I began looking into it. He began taking the money from these different organizations back when Tessa was still alive. For years. He’d clean it up and spit it back out their shell companies. Either he was sloppy and didn’t know about it…”

“But Father’s not sloppy. Anything but sloppy.”

“No,” Barbara agreed. “No, he’s not.”

“Anything else?”

“Money has been exiting the funds but it’s not returning to clients. Embezzlement, Ashley.”

“Father was stealing the client’s money?”

She shook her head. “No, just the criminals’. It’s been leaving through checks to a series of bank accounts in the Caymans.”

I face-palmed. She couldn’t be serious! The worst thing a stiffed client would do is report you to the cops. A stiffed client that’s also the leader of a criminal organization. “So that’s why they’re coming after us?”

“They tried to get into the penthouse in Manhattan,” Elizabeth said. “And the house in the Hamptons.”

“Jesus Christ.” I shook my head. “Why? Why was he doing this? Just for more money? How could we get any wealthier than we are now?”

Barbara just shrugged. “To see if he could? The only one who knows for sure is your father.”

“And Martin’s missing.”

“Somewhere in Colorado, you think?”

“Somewhere here, yes. With the passwords for those Cayman Island accounts.”

“Fuck. How much? Do you know?”

“Upwards,” Barbara said carefully, “of thirty-five million.”

I sucked in a breath. “Holy shit.”

“Yes. That’s an understandable reaction, Ms. Maxwell.”

I bit my lip and brushed my hair back from my face as I gave them both a careful look. “Why are you two telling me this? Am I in danger?”

Barbara snorted. “Well, of course. Look at what’s already happened. Clearly, they think they can get to your father through you. Or perhaps that there’s an off chance you might know something.”

“What can I do?” I asked. “The sooner we get this over with and get him into FBI custody, the sooner he’s safe, right?”

“You do realize,” Barbara said, “if he goes to the authorities, the fund is gone. No more M Three Investments. All of it. Gone.”

“Do you really think I fucking care about that? About the money? About my fucking allowance? So what? If it means my father gets to live I’ll just get a fucking job, Barb!”

My father’s assistant’s eyes went wide, and she glanced at Elizabeth.

“Don’t fucking look at her, you look at me. How can I help?”

There was complete silence until, beside me, Elizabeth swallowed hard. “Well, he may try and contact you. If he does, please let us know, so we can get him a lawyer and get him to meet with the investigators and come clean. Maybe we can get a plea deal or something. Anything.”

I turned to her and nodded. I turned back to Barbara and watched as her expression went back to her normal, pinched look.

“Or maybe,” Barbara said, “we can get the information on those accounts to the criminals it belongs to, and they’ll all let us keep our heads, then we can cover our tracks with the feds.”

I took a deep breath on that note, and pushed back from the table. “Know what? I don’t want anything to do with this. At all.”

Both women looked at me, their mouths hanging open.

“If I hear from Father, I’ll let you know, okay?”

“But, honey–”

“Shut it, bimbo.”

She gasped.

“This is getting downright criminal, and I’d rather be poor than in prison. So, I’ll keep Frank, my security, with me till this blows over, but I’m not getting wrapped up in this shit with the feds. Keep my cards cut off, do whatever you want, but I’m not going to help you cover up Father’s crimes, no matter how nice it is being rich. If he contacts me, I’ll tell him to talk to his lawyer, to turn himself in.”

I promptly got up and threw open the conference room door.

Outside in the hallway, Frank and Simon exchanged looks as I they leaned against the wall. Behind me Barbara jumped up from the table. “Ashley! Ashley Maxwell, you come back in here! Right now, you ungrateful little bitch!”

I turned around and gave her the finger. “Screw you, Hacks.” I turned to Frank. “We’re leaving!”

He and Simon exchanged surprised looks as I turned and stomped to the front of the office, headed for the parking lot.