Free Starfish Island by Deborah Brown Page B

he could trust. Sebastian headed up the New York office of Edwards Inc. This email could only mean that something else had gone wrong.
    He opened the attachment, which had Sebastian’s personal imprint at the top, and read intently. After a bit of amusing gossip concerning business acquaintances, Sebastian had written:
Even though we’re fully cooperating, a grand jury investigation seems inevitable. Local politicians are salivating at the thought of making names for themselves, using us as an example—a signal to other corporations that they’re not powerful enough to resist unnecessary governmental control. I’ll keep you informed of any developments. Warm regards to Cecilia.
 
    Michael fixed his eyes on the turquoise-green water. He’d lived and breathed this nightmare for several months now. Someone within the company had used the Edwards name to buy several thousand acres of unimproved land, first in California and then in central Florida, in areas where acreage prices were low and subdivision regulations loose. All one had to do to escape close scrutiny and regulation was subdivide down to two-and-a-half-acre lots, with each parcel held in a different name. Then they were sold with the promise that the area would be developed into a community—complete with residential and commercial areas and equipped with schools—though there were no such plans in place. Then, if that wasn’t bad enough, every parcel was sold several times over—easy to do, as it was difficult to locate an individual parcel that was land-locked into a much larger one in the middle of nowhere—thereby bilking unsuspecting buyers out of millions.
    Those involved with the high-pressure sales tactics passed themselves off as agents of Edwards Inc., leading prospective buyers to think they were doing business with a reputable company. Edwards was a leader in the construction industry, primarily building high-end retail shopping malls.
    Sebastian was overseeing the investigation out of the New York office, but he and Michael were working together to find the responsible people. They knew it had to be someone high up based on the security clearance needed to get at the client information in the Edwards Inc. computer files. Only after complaints were filed by defrauded buyers was it discovered that a company computer had been hacked and someone had been accessing confidential information to aid them in their scam. The tech responsible for monitoring the files in question had been full of pitiful excuses for essentially being asleep on the job. His explanations still rankled, and they were starting to wonder if he’d been paid to look the other way.
    Michael and Sebastian were the only two who had complete access to the company’s files, and were now being accused of criminal acts on a massive scale. They were working with high-priced lawyers and the best private investigation firm in the country specializing in corporate fraud to find out who was behind this land fraud scheme—and put a stop to it. They had to find the people responsible or Edwards Inc. would be in financial ruin; the feds would see to that. And, as if that wasn’t bad enough, he and Sebastian could end up in prison for crimes they didn’t commit. Not to mention the employees who would be tainted by the scandal and find it difficult, if not impossible, to get another job.
    Michael shook his head to dispel the useless thoughts – it would do no good to dwell on the matter – and reread the closing. So, Sebastian sent his regards to his sister. Cecilia was a brilliant woman with an intuitive business sense; she’d definitely earned her position as president of Edwards Inc. Since her husband’s death, she had become all-work; she’d lost some of her love of adventure, didn’t laugh as much, and was much more subdued. Michael couldn’t remember the last time she’d taken her sailboat out. At one time, she’d enjoyed competitive racing; now, she spent far too much time on