Chapter 3 - The Ghost of Northstar
Ryan tried to call his boss, the CEO of Mercer Financial, but the call went straight to voicemail. He tried his corporate credit card to book a hotel room; it was declined.
By noon, the news broke across the financial sectors. Northstar Logistics pulls all asset management contracts from Mercer Financial.
In the world of high finance, a four-hundred-million-dollar withdrawal isn't just a loss; it's a death blow. By 2:00 PM on Christmas Day, the board of directors at Mercer Financial called an emergency meeting. Ryan was summoned via a text message from the CEO: Do not come to the office tomorrow. You are suspended pending an internal audit.
Sitting in my study, watching the data feeds on my monitor, I watched the dominos fall. Emily was resting upstairs, Lily safely asleep in a custom cherry-wood crib I had bought months ago, waiting for the day she would finally come home.
"They're panicking, Dad," Emily said, walking into the study holding a warm cup of tea. The color was returning to her cheeks, but her eyes were still haunted by the abuse she had endured.
"Let them panic," I said, turning my chair to face her. "For two years, Ryan made you feel small. He made you think you were helpless without his family’s prestige. I let you make your own choices, sweetheart, because I wanted you to see his true face. But now that he's shown it... I am going to erase him from the board."
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"Margaret called my old phone," Emily whispered. "She was screaming. She said they're staying in a cheap motel. She threatened to release medical records showing I suffered from postpartum depression to take Lily away."
I leaned forward, my knuckles turning white. "Let her try. I own the hospital she bought those fake records from."
