Chapter 12 - The Phoenix RisesDowntown Phoenix was bustling under the blistering afternoon heat, but inside the thirty-third-floor offices of Vance & Smith Forensic Accounting, the atmosphere was cool, focused, and electric.
I sat at my glass executive desk, reviewing the final figures for our firm’s latest acquisition—a mid-sized forensic auditing firm based out of San Francisco that wanted to merge under our brand. Three years ago, I had been an unpaid servant in a marble kitchen, told I had no head for business. Today, my signature was required to greenlight multi-million-dollar corporate expansions.
The frosted glass door opened, and Marcus walked in, holding a leather-bound portfolio and a steaming mug of dark roast.
“San Francisco is officially on board,” Marcus announced with a grin, tossing the portfolio onto my desk. “Their senior partners agreed to our equity split without a single counter-offer. They know a powerhouse when they see one.”
“Good,” I said, closing the digital spreadsheet on my monitor and looking up. “Make sure their compliance team undergoes our background vetting process. I don't want any surprises.”
“Already handled,” Marcus paused, leaning against the edge of the desk. “By the way, social registry came out this morning. You’re officially featured on the cover of Southwest Business Journal as one of the top forty financial strategists under forty.”
I looked at the glossy magazine cover resting near my keyboard. The photo showed me in a sharp, tailored slate-grey suit, my expression calm, resolute, and entirely unyielding. There was no trace of the quiet, frightened woman who had walked out of Paradise Valley with a battered suitcase.
“Keep it,” I said softly. “Send a copy to the post office box in Mesa.”
May you like
Marcus raised an eyebrow, a knowing smile playing on his lips. “Still keeping tabs on the ex?”
“Not tabs,” I replied, standing up and walking toward the floor-to-ceiling windows to watch the city traffic below. “Just making sure he remembers who taught him the value of a hard day's work.”
