Chapter 6 - The Boardroom Trap
That evening, Amara sat at the kitchen island, her head buried in her arms.
"He's going to take them," she sobbed softly. "The system will look at my medical records from last week and see a mother who couldn't feed her children. They'll give him temporary custody just to keep them out of my hands while they investigate."
Nathan sat beside her, sipping his coffee, his expression unreadable, calm, and terrifyingly focused.
"He won't take them," Nathan said smoothly.
"Nathan, you don't understand how dirty he plays!" Amara cried, looking up at him. "He knows how to manipulate people!"
"Amara," Nathan said, turning to face her, resting his strong hand over hers. "Richard thinks he's playing a game of extortion. He doesn't realize he's playing it against a man who buys and sells companies for a living."
The next morning at 10:00 AM, Richard Vance walked into the top-floor executive suite of Pierce Logistics, whistling arrogance as he adjusted his collar. He expected to see Nathan holding an open checkbook.
Instead, when Richard pushed open the double doors of the boardroom, he found himself facing not just Nathan Pierce, but six attorneys in dark suits, two investigators from the State Revenue Department, and a Detective from the Columbus Narcotics Unit.
Richard froze, his hand slipping off the brass door handle. "What... what is this?"
"Take a seat, Mr. Vance," Nathan said from the head of the long conference table, tossing a thick black binder across the polished glass.
May you like
"What's this?" Richard stammered.
"That," Nathan explained, leaning back in his chair, "is three years of your bank records, offshore gambling accounts, and unpaid state tax liabilities, compiled by my forensic accounting team over the last twelve hours."
