Chapter 5 - The Sabotage & The Boardroom Ambush
At 1:00 PM, the grand executive boardroom on the 50th floor of Meridian Tower was filled to capacity.
Richard Carter sat at the head of the long glass table, surrounded by twelve senior board members, corporate lawyers, and major institutional investors. Julian Vance stood behind him, clutching a leather briefcase.
"Members of the board," Richard announced, his voice ringing with authority. "It is with a heavy heart that I convene this emergency session. My son, James, has suffered a severe personal crisis that has compromised his judgment. He has abandoned critical international negotiations and spent the last twenty-four hours using company resources for personal, unapproved matters."
A murmur of concern swept across the table.
"Therefore," Richard continued, pressing a button to distribute documents to every seat, "I am exercising my right as founding shareholder to call for an immediate vote to remove James Carter as Chief Executive Officer and reinstate myself as Chairman."
"Is that so, Richard?"
The heavy mahogany doors flew open.
James walked into the boardroom. He wore a crisp dark grey suit, immaculate and commanding, his eyes cold as steel. Behind him came Marcus, two city police detectives, and the Assistant District Attorney of New York.
Richard’s eyes narrowed. "James. You have no standing to interrupt a formal board vote."
"I have every standing," James said smoothly, walking down the center of the room and placing a black tablet on the table. "Because before you take a vote on my competency, the board deserves to see what you've been doing with company funds."
James tapped the tablet screen.
The large digital display at the front of the boardroom lit up, showing bank statements, offshore transfer records, and private communications.
"Over the last three years," James explained, addressing the shocked board members, "Richard Carter has embezzled forty-two million dollars from our logistics development fund to pay off personal debts and bribe municipal officials. And when he discovered that my daughter and her mother had returned to New York, he hired Julian Vance to organize a hit-and-run on 42nd Street yesterday afternoon."
"Lie! This is utter slander!" Richard roared, slamming his fist on the table. "Security, escort these people out!"
"Don't bother, Mr. Carter," one of the police detectives stepped forward, pulling out a pair of handcuffs. "We already have Julian Vance's driver in custody. He confessed forty minutes ago. He gave us the recorded phone calls where Mr. Vance instructed him on your behalf to hit Rebecca Morgan."
Julian turned pale and tried to bolt toward the side exit, but Marcus stepped in his path, effortlessly pinning him against the wall and snapping handcuffs onto his wrists.
The room erupted into total chaos. Board members stood up, shouting in shock, waving the financial documents.
"Richard Carter," the lead detective said, walking up to the head of the table. "You are under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, and corporate fraud. You have the right to remain silent."
As the cold steel cuffs clicked around Richard’s wrists, the old man looked at his son with a mixture of shock and bitter fury.
"You ruined your own father for that girl?" Richard hissed.
James walked up to him, looking down with cold indifference. "You ruined yourself, Richard, the day you thought money gave you the right to destroy human lives. Enjoy the rest of your life behind bars."
The detectives led Richard and Julian out of the tower in full view of hundreds of employees and news cameras waiting on the street below.
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James turned to the remaining board members, who were sitting in stunned silence.
"Now," James said calmly, buttoning his jacket. "Let's get back to business."
