Chapter 10 - The Final Audit
Three months later, the headlines across every major financial publication read: DOYLE MERIDIAN REBORN: MADISON DOYLE CLEANS HOUSE AND TAKES WALL STREET BY STORM.
The federal trial of Stephen and Karen Doyle had concluded swiftly, sealed by mountains of digital evidence, forensic bank trails, and unassailable witness testimony. Stephen was currently serving a fifteen-year sentence in a maximum-security federal penitentiary with no possibility of parole, stripped of his assets, his status, and his illusions of control. Karen’s legal team hadn't even bothered to mount a defense against the mountain of corporate fraud and conspiracy charges; she had taken a plea deal in exchange for avoiding a life sentence, disappearing into the federal prison system where her polished heels and expensive coats meant absolutely nothing.
I sat behind the massive mahogany desk in the executive suite, signing the final paperwork for the corporate restructuring of Doyle Meridian. The office had been completely redesigned—no more slate gray and midnight blue. Warm mahogany, vibrant green plants, and photographs of my mother smiling in the sunshine now filled the space with light and life.
My phone chimed on the desk. A text from Dante: Car is downstairs. Don't keep me waiting, CEO.
May you like
I smiled, closed the folder, and slipped my laptop into my bag. As I walked out of the office and down the private elevator, my reflection stared back at me in the mirrored doors. There were no bruises on my jaw, no fear in my eyes, and no one standing behind me to dictate my steps.
When the elevator doors opened to the lobby, a black sedan waited at the curb, and Dante stood beside the open door, holding a single white rose. I didn't look back as I stepped out into the bright afternoon sun, ready for whatever chapter came next.
