“Let’s go through the papers again and notate anything we think could possibly be related and then think about whether it was planted for a reason.”
“Yeah, I guess we can do that.” I sighed. “Though, I’ve been through those papers pretty thoroughly.” I held my hands up in despair. “I don’t understand why he would plant that. It basically says that my father was one of the founders of the company when it started. It says that he created the products and had the patents. And that he wanted to leave the company and take his patents with him. For some reason he never left, he never got his patents, and we both know he had no power at the company and made very little money. What could Larry possibly want me to take from that, that could benefit him?” I was confused.
“It doesn’t add up,” Jakob agreed. “If anything, it informs and educates you and puts him and the company in a bad light.”
“Yeah, and the letter from my dad, well, that basically informed me that my mom was murdered. Why would he let me have that letter? Why would he want me to know that information?”
“I don’t know.” Jakob frowned. “But there has to be a reason. And the fact that he told you to look through the paperwork again—he wants to make sure that you understand the importance of all the claims.”
“Why would he care?”
“Is there anything else you haven’t told me? Any other papers? Any other notes? Any secret files from your father?” Jakob cocked his head and surveyed my face.
“No, not that I know of. Why?”
“We need to speak to Larry. Do you have his number?”
“I don’t know where he is—my messages just go to voice mail now.” I sat up as well. “When I spoke to him, his wife called a number from a pay phone. She wouldn’t let me have it. He hung up when I was speaking to him, and when we called right back, the line had been disconnected. I don’t know what happened, but he sounded really scared. I think he was trying to tell me that there was no Mattias as well.” I stared at Jakob, something bothering me. “But if he’s the one behind it, why did he sound scared?”
“He might have been on a pay-as-you-go phone.” Jakob licked his lips and I was momentarily distracted by the tip of his tongue as it glided back and forth. “If the credit on his phone ran out during the call, it would have disconnected and you wouldn’t have been able to get him on the phone again until he added more.”
“I never thought about that.” My mind was buzzing. “But it makes sense. I was wondering how a phone could just be out of service that quickly.” I played with my hair. “So he really was playing me then?”
“He knows all the secrets of the company, Bianca. He knew that there was no Mattias, of course he was playing you,” Jakob answered me, his face looking thoughtful. “He was really close to both our dads. I think he was a part of the corporation from the beginning.”
“Oh? I didn’t know that.” I paused. “Didn’t Blake say that the paperwork he found said that Larry started after Maxwell left? Oh, how I wish we could find Maxwell.”
“Yeah. I don’t know his whole story.” Jakob frowned. “I just know that my dad trusted Larry more than anyone else.”
“I guess that was good for your dad, not so good for anyone else.” I made a face. “I know my dad trusted him as well, but look where that got him. A dead wife, no shares in a multibillion-dollar corporation, and a horrible life.”
“It doesn’t make sense, though.” Jakob shook his head as he stared at me. “What did Larry gain?”
“Money, duh.” I looked at him for a few seconds, wondering if he was the right person to be investigating this with me. If he couldn’t even figure out what Larry was gaining from this, then what sort of smarts did he have?
“Yeah, so that’s obvious.” Jakob jumped up and ran out of the living room. I stared after him, wondering what was going on. He ran back into the room with the notepad and pen. “Money was his motivator when he was young, but what’s his motivation now?”
“He doesn’t want to go to jail.” I rolled my eyes. “He’s trying to scare me off.”
“No.” Jakob shook his head. “That doesn’t make sense. If that were true, he wouldn’t have given you the boxes or the information in the first place. He also wouldn’t have given you warnings.”
“He’s the one who told David that I wanted shares in Bradley Inc. He’s the one who tipped David off that I was investigating.”
Jakob’s eyes narrowed. “He was, but why?”
“Like I said, to protect himself.”
“Yes, maybe. It doesn’t completely add up.”
“None of this adds up.” I sighed. “The fact is that I only got into the meeting because I used his proxy shares, so I didn’t even have access to be a threat or to seek out your brother until he gave it to me.”
“There has to be a reason he gave you your father’s paperwork and gave you those shares.” Jakob scratched his head. “He could have avoided all of this.”