Chapter 3 - The Boardroom Panic
Inside the penthouse suite of the Vale Estate, the atmosphere was chaotic. Glass platters of untouched catering sat on the marble kitchen island, while Victoria paced the length of the floor-to-ceiling windows, a glass of amber scotch shaking violently in her hand.
"It’s everywhere, Julian!" she shouted, her perfect makeup now smeared with sweat and panic. "The video from the hotel entrance has over ten million views on the news platforms. The corporate board is calling emergency sessions. The shares for the tech merger opened five percent down in the pre-market trading! We have to suppress it! Buy the network, buy the servers, do something!"
Julian sat at the massive mahogany desk, his laptop screen reflecting rows of red numbers. His face was grim. "You can't buy the internet, Victoria. You let a twelve-year-old child outsmart you on a public sidewalk because you couldn't control your temper."
"She was supposed to be dead to us!" Victoria shrieked, slamming her glass onto the table. "Twelve years ago, your father told me that if I surrendered the baby to Marianne, the medical records would be sealed forever! Marianne promised she would live in the shadows! She promised she would never come back to this city!"
"Marianne kept her promise until she was diagnosed with terminal heart failure three months ago," Julian said coldly, turning his laptop around to show a legal brief. "She didn't come to ruin you, Victoria. She came because she was dying, and she knew that the trust fund you set up for the boy—the one you secretly emptied three years ago to fund our real estate expansion—was empty. She came to demand the money that belonged to her son."
Victoria collapsed into a leather armchair, her face draining of color. "The trust... nobody was supposed to look at those accounts until the boy turned eighteen. How did Arthur Hale get involved?"
"Marianne wasn't stupid," Julian sneered. "She knew you were a predator, Victoria. Before she died, she sent a complete copy of the financial audit to Hale’s firm. He’s been waiting for the right moment to strike a blow against our family for a decade. And now, you’ve handed him the perfect weapon on a silver platter."
The door to the study opened, and the family’s chief corporate attorney, Lawrence Vance, stepped inside. His expression was utterly defeated.
"Julian, Victoria," Vance said, adjusting his glasses. "We have a massive problem. The downtown branch of Metro Bank just notified us. Arthur Hale and the boy just checked into the secure vault with a primary corporate key. They are opening the private archive locker registered under the name of Marianne Cole."
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Victoria stood up, her heart hammering against her ribs. "Stop them! File an emergency injunction! Tell the bank the key was stolen!"
"It’s too late," Vance whispered. "The locker has already been opened. And whatever was inside... Hale has already transported it directly to the federal prosecutor's office."
