“Don’t take offense?” Filled with fury and still hurting from her fight with Jarik, she was more than ready for Sebastian. “Are you out of your mind? This is a charity. It’s not a business. We don’t have a brand. There’s nothing wrong with how I handle donors and press. We’ve had some great cash donations this year, and that’s something else that we need to talk about. Where did that cash go?”
Sebastian whirled around and narrowed his eyes. Normally, her brother was such a fun-loving guy, but right now, he looked cold and hard. “Are you accusing me of stealing funds?”
“I don’t want to, but I know that something is going on. You didn’t ignore me for days because you were talking to the press. There is something very wrong, and you need to tell me what it is, right now.”
She pushed him into the nearest tent and closed the flap behind them. “I need you to come clean, Sebastian. What are you not telling me?”
“You’re reading too much into things. I spent the cash on toys. You should know that. You went and picked up the crates!”
“Yes, I did. I picked up two crates, and I know there’s no way in hell that those two crates were filled with enough toys to cover the donations! Where is the rest of the money?” She knew she was g
etting louder and louder, but she couldn’t help herself. Maria wasn’t letting her brother go until she found out what was going on.
Sebastian crossed his arms. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Maria. Everything is fine.”
“Then show me the receipts.”
For the first time, uncertainty wavered in Sebastian’s eyes, and she felt her heart plummet. Despite knowing that something was wrong, she was still holding out hope that there was a good explanation for everything.
“I didn’t keep the receipts,” he said dully.
“You didn’t keep the receipts? We’ve been doing this for five years, and you didn’t keep the receipts? I swear to God, Sebastian, if you don’t come clean right now, I’m going to have to murder you.”
“Keep your voice down,” he hissed. “Everything is going to be fine, Maria. I’m your brother. You have to trust me.”
There was only one other time he’d ever said that to her. Staring at him, she put a hand over her stomach. She honestly thought that she was going to be sick. “You’re gambling again,” she whispered. The confirmation was written all over his face, and she lost it. Balling her fists, she started to yell. “Are you fucking kidding me? You’re using the funds from the charity to cover your ass? And you thought that if you smoozed the press they wouldn’t dig deep enough to realize what’s going on?”
“Maria! Keep your voice down” He reached over to grab her. “It’s going to be fine. It’s only a few thousand. I needed something to cover me while I tried to win the money back.”
“How much?” When he didn’t answer right away, she reached up and slapped him. The movement stung her palm, and that pissed her off even more. “How much?” she screamed.
Sunlight spilled into the tent as the flap opened, and Tessa ducked in. Her face was filled with panic. “Maria? Sebastian? What are you doing? Why are you yelling at each other?”
“Shit. Tessa,” Sebastian said hoarsely. “Did you hear any of that?”
“Did I hear it? Half the camp heard it. And what’s worse, the press members standing right outside the tent heard it. What the fuck is going on?”
“Oh, my God,” Maria moaned. “Damage control. We need to do damage control right now.”
“What the hell are we going to say?” her brother asked dully. She could tell that he was already retreating inside himself, and he wouldn’t be any help.
“I don’t know, but we need to figure out what they heard and figure out a way to fix it, because if we don’t, this will be the last good thing Christmas Crates ever does, thanks to you.”
Jarik stood impatiently on the courthouse steps. Turning, he pocketed his cell phone, as he watched a dark car pull up and Kivi climb out. Jarik felt all his old anger rise to the surface. It was bad enough that Maria had accused him of using his money like a weapon, but he couldn’t stand the smug smile on his old friend’s face.
“Well, well, well. Jarik. I certainly didn’t expect to see you here,” Kivi said mockingly.
“I heard the good news that your key witness was dropping from the trial. I thought I’d come along and see how things were progressing for you.”
Kivi raised his arms as the authorities leaned over and unlocked the handcuffs. As he rubbed his wrists, he cocked his head. “I didn’t expect you to be the one to celebrate my release.”
“You’re not released yet, Kivi. And you’re right. That’s not what I’m here for.” Jarik reached into his bag and pulled out the folder. “You see, I was here to give the court this.”
“What is that?”
“Copies of all your financial records. After three of my friends decided to invest in your new business, I did some digging. It may have been my word that got you arrested, but I’ve been compiling evidence against you in case this ever happened.”
“What evidence? My operation was smooth and clean. The only reason I was in these handcuffs is because you are the son of a crowned Sheikh.” Kivi stepped closer to him. “But we’re not in your country, and you have no authority here.”