Chapter 3 - The Boardroom Coup
The corporate headquarters of Beaumont Timber and Holdings was a monolith of glass and dark mahogany situated in the heart of the city’s financial district. The top-floor boardroom offered a sweeping view of the misty valley, the very forests that had built the family’s generational wealth.
At 8:55 AM, Frederick Beaumont stood at the head of the long conference table, adjusting his silk tie. His face was composed, the panic from the previous evening buried beneath a mask of corporate bravado. Avery sat in the gallery section behind him, her chin held high, the stolen diamond ring prominently displayed on her left middle finger.
Around the table sat twelve members of the board of directors—older men in tailored suits who had been loyal to the Beaumont name for decades.
"Thank you all for coming on such short notice," Frederick began, his voice echoing with practiced authority. "As you know, we buried my son Jasper yesterday. It is a profound tragedy. However, business cannot halt. Jasper’s estate is currently tied up in an unstable legal situation due to his wife’s total lack of commercial understanding. To protect the integrity of Beaumont Holdings, I am introducing an emergency resolution to temporarily suspend all voting rights associated with Jasper's shares and reassign executive control to myself."
"Is that legal under the current bylaws, Frederick?" asked Marcus Sterling, the oldest director and a longtime ally of Jasper’s grandfather.
"Absolutely," Frederick lied smoothly. "Under Section Nine, in the event of an executive’s sudden demise without a pre-approved corporate succession plan, the primary patriarch retains ultimate veto power. The widow has already indicated her desire to cooperate and step away from all family matters."
The heavy double doors at the back of the boardroom swung open with a loud, dramatic click.
Every head turned.
Hazel stepped into the room, her posture straight, her expression entirely serene. She was flanked by Miriam Cole and Toby, who wore a clean suit, his bruised cheek a silent, powerful testament to the events of the previous evening. Hazel carried the black folder under her arm like a weapon.
Frederick’s eyes narrowed, his hands gripping the edge of the podium. "Hazel? This is a private executive session. You have no legal standing to be in this room. Please wait in the reception area, and our legal team will handle your paperwork later today."
"Actually, Mr. Beaumont, she has every right," Miriam Cole announced, stepping forward and tossing a stack of certified documents onto the center of the conference table. "In fact, she is the only person in this room who has the legal authority to convene this meeting."
Marcus Sterling picked up the documents, his spectacles slipping down his nose as he scanned the notarized pages. His face went entirely blank. "Frederick... what is the meaning of this? These are the master trust certificates from Arthur’s estate. They show that Jasper held sixty-eight percent of the absolute voting shares. And they have been fully transferred to Hazel Beaumont as of midnight last night."
A murmur of shock rippled through the boardroom. Several directors stood up, crowding around Sterling to look at the paperwork.
Avery bolted from her chair, her face contorting with rage. "That's impossible! Those shares belong to the family! My father-in-law would never leave the company to a common nurse!"
"Your father-in-law left the company to the only man who wasn't stealing from it, Avery," Hazel said, her voice dropping into an icy, commanding tone that silenced the entire room. She walked down the length of the table, stopping directly opposite Frederick. "Frederick, your motion to freeze my husband's estate is out of order. Furthermore, as the majority shareholder of Beaumont Timber and Holdings, I am introducing a new resolution."
She looked at Miriam, who opened her briefcase and pulled out the flash drive.
"We are introducing an immediate motion to terminate Frederick Beaumont from his position as Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately," Hazel announced, her eyes locked onto her father-in-law’s trembling frame. "We are also presenting evidence of a twelve-million-dollar embezzlement scheme conducted through Apex Logistics over the last five years. If the board does not vote unanimously to remove him right now, federal regulators will be in this room by noon to shut this entire building down."
Frederick looked around the table, desperation clawing at his throat. "Marcus! Tell her she can't do this! We’ve been partners for thirty years!"
Marcus Sterling looked at the evidence logs Miriam had provided, then looked up at Frederick with an expression of cold disgust. "Thirty years, Frederick, and you were stealing from our employees' retirement funds while your son was dying in a hospital bed. I second the motion for immediate termination."
"All in favor?" Hazel asked.
May you like
Twelve hands went up in unison. Not a single director looked at Frederick.
"The motion carries," Hazel said flatly. "Frederick, Avery—get out of my boardroom."
