Chapter 4 - The Poison Pill
That night, Nathan’s penthouse felt less like a sanctuary and more like a fortress under siege.
Lily was asleep in the guest room, exhausted from the sudden change in her life. Nathan and Rebecca sat at the kitchen island, a bottle of untouched scotch between them.
"How did you survive?" Nathan asked quietly, breaking the heavy silence. "For six years. Without me. Without my money."
Rebecca smiled faintly, looking down at her glass. "It wasn't easy. I worked three jobs when she was a baby. Then I got the logistics gig. I was proud of myself, Nathan. I built a life. A small, quiet life, but it was ours. And then your company bought Vanguard, and my world fell apart in twenty-four hours."
"I'm sorry," Nathan said. The words felt small, inadequate, but they were the most honest words he had spoken in a decade. "I was so focused on building an empire that I forgot to be human. I thought if I controlled everything, nothing could hurt me."
"And now?" Rebecca asked, her blue eyes searching his.
"Now I realize I control nothing," Nathan said.
His phone buzzed on the counter. It was a text from an unknown number.
Want to know who signed the letter? Come to the underground parking garage at Pier 40. Alone. 11:00 PM. Or the DNA test results go to the press tomorrow morning.
Nathan stared at the screen.
"What is it?" Rebecca asked, seeing the change in his expression.
"A lead," Nathan lied, standing up. "I have to go meet Marcus. He found something in the server logs."
"Nathan, wait," Rebecca said, standing up with him. She reached out, her hand resting on his forearm. For a second, the years of anger and distance seemed to melt away. "Be careful. Please."
"Always," Nathan said. He leaned down, his lips brushing her forehead—a sudden, protective instinct he couldn't control. "Lock the door behind me."
Thirty minutes later, Nathan’s Maybach pulled into the dark, echoing concrete cavern of Pier 40. The Hudson River lapped angrily against the concrete pillars outside. The air was damp and smelled of salt and oil.
Nathan stepped out of the car, his eyes scanning the shadows. "I'm here! Show yourself!"
A figure stepped out from behind a concrete pillar.
It wasn't Marcus.
It was Victoria Sterling, the lead independent director of the Pierce Investments board—and the woman Nathan had beaten out for the CEO position five years ago.
"Victoria," Nathan said, his voice dropping. "I should have known."
"Oh, Nathan," Victoria laughed, a cold, sharp sound. "You always think you're the smartest man in the room. But you're so predictable. A little boy who never grew up, still terrified of his own shadow."
"You forged that termination letter," Nathan said, stepping forward. "You found out about Rebecca, you had someone hack my digital key, and you fired her to force Lily out into the open."
"Guilty as charged," Victoria said, showing no fear. "But it was so easy, Nathan. You set up the system yourself. Vanguard’s HR was automated. All I had to do was drop Rebecca's name into the algorithm with your digital signature. I knew she'd be desperate. I knew she'd come to you. And I knew your ridiculous ego wouldn't let you ignore a child with your own eyes."
"Why?" Nathan growled. "To kill the Westlake merger?"
"To kill you," Victoria corrected, her eyes gleaming with malice. "The board is already preparing to vote you out tomorrow morning. The stock is tanking. Westlake is about to walk. And I have the proxy votes to take your place as CEO. You're done, Nathan. You can go play happy family in Queens now."
"You think the board will support you after they find out you blackmailed me?"
"Blackmailed?" Victoria smirked. She held up her phone. "There is no blackmail, Nathan. Only a tragedy. Look behind you."
Nathan spun around.
From the shadows, two men in dark hoodies stepped out, their faces covered. One of them held a heavy iron pipe. The other had his hand in his pocket, holding a distinct, heavy shape.
May you like
"A tragic carjacking in a dark parking lot," Victoria whispered, stepping back into the shadows. "The brilliant CEO, taken too soon by the city he tried to own. The board will mourn you. And I will lead them."
The first man lunged.
