Rich H.S

Part 26

24 Hours Ago:

"So it's all set, yeah?" Harry asked, anxiously looking over Jed's shoulder. He had a tight grip on the back of Jed's chair and his eyes trained on his computer screen. Though Harry could see exactly what Jed had done and he understood most of it, there was still a big chunk of Jed's expertise that Harry knew zero about. And if there was one thing Harry hated, it was being uneducated in a certain topic.

He liked to be the smartest one in the room. The one with all the answers and the one that made all the decisions. He did make the decision and thought of the plan himself, but he still had to give the reigns over to Jed. Harry had to trust Jed blindly.

"For the third time. Yes," Jed responded dryly, not giving him a second glance as he made the final touches to the plan.

"And he can't track it to you or me, yeah? It's all backdated and secure. This needs to be something not even the FBI can sniff out as a fake. Understand?" Harry felt anxious. Even though he was confident in Jed and this plan and he had legit and fabricated evidence, there was still room for error. This could all blow up in his face and that was the last thing he needed.

He needed this to work. It couldn't not work. It just wasn't an option.

"The fact that you're still underestimating my abilities is quite insulting." Jed clicked the print button to print the necessary information then relaxed back in his chair. That information was being prepared to slide into a manilla folder much like the one Ethan had dropped at Harry's front door all those weeks ago. "The account's creation has been backdated to the glitch, as has the wire transfer. The money is going to be shown entering the account and staying there-"

"And the company account?" Harry interrupted, pacing back and forth.

"Mate, he wasn't finished talking" Niall scolded, clearing his throat after, trying to cover his irritation. Harry's eyes flashed to him, feeling amused rather than annoyed at the way Niall told him off. It just fed into his theory they were more than friends, and if it weren't such an anxiety-causing situation, Harry would've jabbed a little bit back.

"Sorry." Harry apologised without care. "Jed?" Harry addressed him, needing the information and assurance to calm him down.

"As I was saying. The money looks like it's been wired to Ethan's account then moved back to the company account. A glitch like it actually happened. I've left a deliberate paper trail that connects to Ethan's IP address that shows that the company account has been hacked to look like the money is there when in reality it isn't. It's not obvious to anyone really, because you could check that account right now and it would be there. But if you did an audit or got someone good with computers on there, they'd see it's all a big smokescreen to hide the fact the money is somewhere else."

"Then they'd see Ethan's IP address and connect it to them. When they investigate they'd find the offshore account in his name and see all the dates match up. God, Jed. You're brilliant! This is brilliant! I could kiss ya" Niall exclaimed, excitedly squeezing his shoulders and giving them a little shake.

Harry could see the blush on Jed's cheeks grow and resisted the urge to smile at the way Niall quickly pulled away and cleared his throat before running his hand through his hair. He was embarrassed to be caught and Harry could tell. Still, he said nothing. It wasn't his place to say anything on all the little signs he picked up on.

"And no one would know unless an audit is done?" Harry clarified, sensing the awkwardness the men felt.

Jed nodded, clearing his throat. "Yep. Does your company do audits regularly?"