Chapter 5 - The Boardroom Ambush
At 10:15 AM, the executive boardroom on the forty-fifth floor of the Blake Maritime Tower was filled with tension.
Arthur Blake sat at the head of the conference table, surrounded by twelve board members. Across from him sat Dominic Rossi, wearing a charcoal suit, looking smug and confident, while Chloe sat in a chair behind him, adjusting her hair.
"We have the majority vote," Arthur announced, tapping his pen against a stack of legal documents. "Due to Clara’s unprovoked emotional breakdown yesterday and her abandonment of her duties, we are exercising Clause 14. Her forty percent voting share will be temporarily managed by Dominic Rossi as part of the Blake-Rossi emergency merger."
Dominic leaned back in his chair, a cold, satisfied grin on his face. "It’s for Clara’s own good, Arthur. She’s overwhelmed. I’ll make sure she’s comfortable in her suburban home while we handle the business."
Chloe giggled softly behind him. "She really was far too emotional for this level of stress."
BANG!
The heavy double doors of the boardroom didn't just open—they slammed against the stone walls with the sound of thunder!
Two Valenti lieutenants stepped inside, locking the doors behind them.
Then stepped Clara.
She swept into the room in her emerald velvet dress, the gold chain catching the fluorescent lights, her chin held high, her emerald ring glinting like a dagger on her finger.
Beside her walked Lorenzo Valenti.
The temperature in the room instantly dropped to absolute zero.
Arthur Blake stood up so fast his chair knocked against the wall. "Clara?! What is the meaning of this? Who allowed Lorenzo Valenti into my building?"
Dominic sprang out of his seat, his face turning pale as his eyes darted from Clara to the terrifying crime lord standing beside her. "Clara... what are you doing with him?"
Clara walked to the head of the table, stopping three feet away from Dominic.
She didn't look at Chloe. She didn't look at her uncle. She looked straight into Dominic’s eyes, watching his confidence crumble into sheer terror.
"I’m here for my meeting, Uncle Arthur," Clara said, her voice smooth and dominant.
"Your meeting is cancelled!" Arthur shouted. "You have no standing here! You walked out on your wedding!"
"She didn't walk out on a wedding, Arthur," Lorenzo spoke up, his deep voice filling every corner of the vast room. He stepped forward, resting a heavy hand on Clara’s waist, pulling her close against his side in full view of everyone present. "She simply upgraded."
Clara raised her left hand, placing her emerald-adorned fingers flat on the conference table.
"As of nine o'clock this morning," Clara announced, "I am Mrs. Lorenzo Valenti. And under the maritime bylaws of Illinois, a married shareowner’s stock immediately merges with her spouse's holding firm."
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Dominic stared at the giant emerald on her finger, his breath catching in his throat. "You... you married him? In three hours?!"
"I married a real man, Dominic," Clara said, leaning forward, her eyes narrowing into icy daggers. "And as sixty-five percent stockholders of Blake Maritime... my husband and I are firing you, firing my uncle, and revoking every single Rossi shipping permit in the Western Hemisphere."
