By then, Ryan had been charged with aggravated assault, evidence tampering, and filing a false police report.
Financial crimes would come later.
Brooks was a gentle man with enormous hands and the habit of removing his glasses before saying something unpleasant.
He removed them often.
NBR Heritage Holdings was registered in Delaware.
Its manager was another LLC.
That LLC was owned through a trust.
The trust’s administrator was a foundation.
And sitting three layers below everything was Ryan Hale.
He had spent years building walls between himself and the money.
“It’s not sophisticated because it’s complicated,” Brooks explained. “It’s complicated because complication creates exhaustion. Most people stop digging.”
“How much did he take?”
“We don’t know yet.”
“Guess.”
“I don’t guess.”
“Mr. Brooks.”
He looked at my uniform hanging over the chair in the corner of the conference room. I had changed into civilian clothes for the meeting.
