Chapter 3 - The Boardroom ExecutionAt 9:00 AM sharp, the executive boardroom of Crestview Construction felt like a pressure cooker on the verge of exploding.
Edwin sat at the head of the mahogany table, looking like a ghost. His hair was disheveled, his designer suit creased, and his eyes bloodshot. He had spent the last six hours calling every high-powered contact he knew, only to be met with dead silence or cold hang-ups. Every single line of credit had been recalled. The corporate accounts read zero.
The heavy glass doors swung open.
Attorney Wayne walked in, flanked by three senior legal associates carrying thick leather portfolios. Behind them walked Camila.
She had changed into a tailored, jet-black Chanel pantsuit. Her hair was pulled back into a sharp, flawless knot, and dark sunglasses hid her eyes. The transformation from the submissive, abused housewife into an absolute titan of industry was so jarring that several board members gasped.
“What is the meaning of this?!” Edwin slammed his hands on the table, standing up so fast his chair tipped over. “Guards! Throw this gold-digging whore and her hired clown out of the building right now!”
Not a single security guard moved. They couldn't. Attorney Wayne had already placed the building's management contracts under review.
Wayne adjusted his glasses, offering a razor-sharp smile that reached his eyes. “Sit down, Mr. Vance. You are no longer addressing your wife. You are addressing the primary voting shareholder and Chairwoman of the Stanford Global Trust—the sole entity holding the debt that currently owns every single brick of this corporation.”
The room went dead silent. You could hear the faint hum of the air conditioner.
Annika, who had rushed to the office behind her mother, shrieked from the back of the room. “That’s impossible! The Stanfords are dirt poor! My brother told me her father was just a retired clerk!”
Camila slowly removed her sunglasses. Her gaze swept over the board members before locking onto Edwin, who was trembling violently.
“My father started Crestview Construction thirty years ago,” Camila’s voice echoed, calm, crisp, and dripping with lethal authority. “He stepped back to let a hungry, ungrateful parasite run it as a subsidiary, believing the man would treat his daughter with respect. Edwin, you proved my father wrong within twenty-four hours of his passing.”
She opened a folder and slid a single document across the table.
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“This is a summary of your corporate malfeasance, asset-stripping, and the unauthorized transfer of company funds to your personal mistress over the past eighteen months,” Camila said softly. “Effective immediately, your shares are revoked, your employment is terminated, and the police have been notified regarding your financial crimes.”
Edwin’s knees buckled. He collapsed back into his chair, gasping for air as his entire world turned to ash.
