Chapter 8 - The Empire RestructuredBy Monday morning, the corporate headquarters of Vale Global Industries looked like a crime scene. Boxes were piled in the lobby, shredders whirred continuously in executive offices, and my nameplate—Mia Vale, CEO & Chairperson—was already bolted to the massive mahogany desk on the top floor.
David Vance sat across from me, sipping black coffee while flipping through a stack of termination letters.
“The board has unanimously ratified your emergency measures,” David said, looking up with an impressed grin. “Adrian’s stock options have been legally forfeited under the morals and criminal liability clauses. He’s completely wiped out. As for Celeste…”
“What about her?” I asked, signing a document authorizing a full audit of her personal bank accounts.
“She’s currently recovering in the maternity ward under police guard. And by the way, the paternity results were leaked to the tabloids an hour ago. Turns out the father of her child isn’t Adrian. It’s one of his junior vice presidents, who has already fled the country.”
I let out a soft, genuine laugh, looking out the floor-to-ceiling glass windows at the sprawling city skyline below. The morning sun caught the glass towers, painting the financial district in gold.
“Poor Adrian,” I murmured, without a single ounce of sympathy. “He always hated being second best. Now he’s not even on the podium.”
My phone buzzed on the desk. An incoming call from a restricted prison line.
May you like
I let it ring three times before sliding my thumb across the screen and pressing it to my ear.
“Mia,” Adrian’s voice sounded cracked, small, and utterly broken, echoing through the hollow acoustics of the county holding facility. “Please… you have to help me. They’re talking about ten years. They froze my personal accounts. I have nothing left. Not even a lawyer.”
