Chapter 5 - The Corporate Counter-StrikeWithin two hours, the nineteenth-floor executive bullpen of Marrow Holdings looked like a war room.
I sat at the head of the glass conference table, my sleeves rolled up, my tie loosened. Surrounding me were my top forensic accountants, my fiercest corporate litigators, and Richard Vance—who looked like he was about to throw up from the sheer stress of being caught between his cousin Julian and me.
"Give me every transaction Julian Vance has touched in the last twenty-four months," I commanded, tossing a dossier onto the center of the glass. "Every off-shore account, every property acquisition, every personal wire transfer. I want to know if he bought that engagement ring with company assets."
"Tobias," Richard interjected nervously, adjusting his glasses. "Julian is a senior partner now. If we launch an internal audit without absolute rock-solid probable cause, the board will call a vote of no confidence. You’re already vulnerable after the Singapore delay."
I slammed my palm flat against the glass table. The sharp crack echoed through the silent room like a gunshot.
"Do I look like I care about a board vote, Richard? My wife—my undivorced wife—walked into my office with my twin sons and announced she's marrying my own executive vice president who helped orchestrate a three-year vanishing act! If you don't find me dirt on Julian by midnight, you can pack your desk right alongside him."
Richard swallowed hard, nodding rapidly. "Understood. Financial forensics, coming up."
As the team scrambled back to their terminals, my private line buzzed. I snatched the receiver off the cradle.
"Marrow."
"Daddy?"
The tiny, high-pitched voice froze the blood in my veins.
It wasn't Julian. It wasn't Elena.
It was Leo.
"Leo?" I whispered, my voice cracking, all the corporate armor instantly melting away. "Where are you? Where's your mother?"
"Mommy is crying in the big car," Leo said in a matter-of-fact tone. "The man with the shiny teeth said we are moving to London tomorrow. But I told him I wanted my tie man."
My grip on the phone tightened until my knuckles turned white. "The man with the shiny teeth" could only be Julian. He was moving them out of the country. He was trying to put an ocean between me and my sons before I could even file a counter-injunction.
"Listen to me very carefully, Leo," I said, my voice dropping into a low, fierce whisper. "Don't get in the car. Tell Mommy that Tobias is coming right now."
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Before Leo could reply, the line went dead with a sharp click.
I slammed the phone down, grabbed my custom wool overcoat off the rack, and bolted out of the conference room.
