“What do you mean?”
He hesitated, choosing his words carefully.
“Your name is Clara Bennett, correct?”
She went still.
“How do you know that?”
“Because I looked into the message before coming here. I wanted to make sure this wasn’t a scam, and I discovered something about your former employer.”
Her face lost its remaining color.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Ethan Mercer.”
She stared at him.
Then her eyes widened as recognition settled in.
“Mercer Capital?”
“Yes.”
“Harmon Financial Services belongs to your company.”
“Indirectly, yes. Harmon is part of a group owned by Mercer Capital.”
Clara took a step backward.
“You came here because of my job?”
“No. I came because your daughter needed formula.”
“Did Richard Cole send you? Did someone tell you I was going to expose them?”
“No.”
“Then how do you know about my termination?”
Ethan’s expression hardened.
“Because your name appeared in an internal report connected to a preliminary review of financial irregularities. The report raised questions about why an employee who had flagged suspicious transactions was dismissed shortly afterward.”
