Chapter 495: In Which They Taunt

Gael shoved his hands into his pockets as he studied Malia, noticing her clenching her hands hard and checking the clock every two seconds as if that would make it go faster…or slower. She looked like she had somewhere to be, not looking scared—just a little nervous—despite Giovanni's outburst. He couldn't expect anything less from a Morelli.

Leaning forward, Giovanni rested his elbows on his knees and looked at the accountant, his brows drawn together, making him look intimidating. Gael wasn't sure what was going on yet, but he was certain it had something to do with KMH because of this accountant. 

"Mr. Ackerman. Why don't you tell him what you just told me a few minutes ago?" prodded Giovanni as he leaned back.

Gael shifted his stare at the accountant, waiting. He didn't know his surname, but he was familiar with his face. The company had hundreds of employees in the main office alone.

Mr. Ackerman glanced at Gael and lowered his head right away, sweat trickling down his temple. "Please… Mr. De Luca," he begged.

Salvatore, Giovanni's right-hand man who stood at the corner quietly like he always did, pulled out his gun and pointed it at the back of the accountant's head, making Ackerman tremble. Salvatore clicked the safety off and pressed the barrel on his head, and said, "Tell him or your whimper will be the last sound that comes out of your mouth."

Ackerman sweat some more, his knees squeezing together like he was about to pee himself. Malia peeked at them and then looked away, sighing as she checked the time again.

Gael got impatient waiting, he narrowed his eyes at the accountant and folded his arms across his chest, tempted to tap his foot on the floor or jam it in the man's throat if he didn't speak the next second.

Stumbling on his words, Ackerman told Gael, "M-Mr. Perry made me do some…some things in the company."

"What things?" Gael questioned.

"Some under the table transactions. Forging signatures. He…made me take some funds from budget allocations in different departments and transfer it to a single offshore account daily."

Gael's lips twitched and his jaw tightened. Daily? What kind of…he seethed. "This is what Perry is doing? Embezzling money from the company? He's only been a partner for a little over two months and now he's already stealing?" He couldn't believe it. It was like Perry was desperate and dumb.

Giovanni let out a mocking chuckle as he leaned forward, peering at Ackerman to taunt him. His tone leaked of sarcasm as he spoke, "Oh, that's not even the fun part, my dear nephew. Go on. Tell him."

Ackerman swallowed. "Mr. De Luca, I don't even know whose account it is. I really have no idea."

The crease between Gael's brows deepened as he shifted his stare to Giovanni. "What is it?"

Giovanni looked up, meeting his nephew's stare, his eyes full of mischief, but only Gael knew that darkness lived behind it. "I had my guy check on the offshore account and only found out tonight that the account holder is under the name…Kristina Rivera. It's so fucked up, isn't it?"

Liquid heat crept up Gael's spine as he dragged his piercing stare back to Ackerman. He clenched his hand into a fist as he sat in the armchair next to the accountant, his eyes never leaving him. He itched to grab the man's throat and crush it with his fingers, imagining he was Perry. That sick fucker.

Ackerman flinched, looking even more scared than he was before Gael sat near him. He could no longer look at his boss's eyes, so he just stared at the table, his hands gripping his thighs.

Gael exchanged looks with Giovanni again. The two of them somewhat conversing in their heads as neither of them uttered a word to each other.

Kristina Rivera.

Kristina as in Giovanni's mother's first name. And Rivera as in Gael's mother's and grandmother's surname—the surname he used before he had to change his name.

"He didn't make it hard to check too," Giovanni added, "…as if the intention was to have it traced easily back to a certain someone." Or in this case, to both Gael and Giovanni. He didn't know how Perry even found out about their mothers—perhaps the Morellis knew about it. Still. It was an insult and it angered both of them.

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Giovanni lazily glanced at Malia, his tone hardening up a notch. "And guess what? The photo on record at the bank's database was hers."

Malia clenched her hands harder, her brows knitting together. She looked properly pissed as she stared at the floor…and then glanced at the clock on the wall again.

'You got somewhere to be?' Gael wondered, still unsure what to make of her being here and getting involved with Perry and his schemes. Was she guilty? Or was she a victim?

"How did you find out about this?" Gael asked his uncle.

Giovanni chuckled under his breath. "My intern. Can you believe that? An intern found out and asked me about it because she was "curious" where the money was going or how could a "lunch" be five hundred dollars… Did the company have to spend that much for a client?" He shook his head. "I'm going to offer her a permanent position once she graduates. Employees like her should be taken care of," he said, shooting a glare at Ackerman.

The accountant tried to beg again. "Please, Sir. I swear, I didn't know whose account it was. I just thought it was Mr. Perry's."

"And you just followed his instructions," Gael remarked with disdain.

"I didn't want to get fired. My girlfriend is pregnant. Sir, please. I really didn't know. I was only following orders."

"What does he have on you?"

"He… He knows where I live," Ackerman stammered. "He's seen my girlfriend. And…he's got my passport. I… He said he could make me disappear."

Giovanni tossed a file on the coffee table, explaining that it was all the transactions made by Ackerman since a few days after Gael and Giovanni came to KMH. They were records of small charges ranging from a two-figure to a three-figure amount from different accounts in the company tagged as miscellaneous funds that if one would see, this could probably be ignored until later unless noticed and then investigated. For three weeks, the total already amounted to $29,130.

It was so much money stolen in less than a month.

Gael threw the file back onto the table and called Rick. "Send him home."

From the corner of his eyes, he could see Giovanni's scowl. His uncle was probably wondering why he was letting Ackerman go. What did Giovanni want to do? Kill Ackerman right now? Gael didn't want to risk it, and they could still use Ackerman later. He met Giovanni's stare for a few seconds and then his uncle nodded at him as if giving him the go signal.

"Have someone keep watch on him 24/7," Gael ordered Rick and then he turned to face Ackerman. The latter was now pale and looked like he was about to pass out. "You work directly to us now. You report to us. You are not to tell Perry that we know about his scheme or speak about this meeting to anyone else."

Ackerman gulped audibly and then nodded.

Gael leaned closer, his voice lowering as he added, "Don't think that just because you came clean that you're absolved from what you did. We also know where you live. And it would only take us a minute to know how your girlfriend looks like. We'll know everything about you—your parents, siblings if any, neighbors, high school teachers, first crush, even your pets. We can have you killed in front of your pregnant girlfriend. Do you understand?"

Tears spilled out of the accountant's eyes as he nodded.

"Show up on Monday. Freshly showered and wear your usual office suit. Act like you weren't just about to piss yourself right now. We'll know if you fucked up, Ackerman. Now go home and be a good boyfriend," Gael bit out the last words.

People could do anything to avoid fear. But it's also fear that makes them do everything.

Rick yanked Ackerman up the couch and walked him out the door.. After Giovanni's signal, Salvatore also left, leaving only Giovanni, Gael, and Malia in the office.

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