Chapter 4 - The Assistant's Trap
While Ryan sat in the ruin of his corporate empire, Madison Hale was sitting in a high-end coffee shop two blocks from the Northstar headquarters, furiously typing on her phone.
Her face was pale, and her designer handbag sat open on the table, overflowing with loose papers and corporate credit card receipts. Her marriage to Ethan was effectively over; he had changed the locks on their Providence townhouse at dawn and filed for an emergency restraining order.
Her only remaining lifeline was Ryan Whitmore.
When the news hit the financial wires that Ryan had been suspended as CEO, Madison's phone nearly slipped from her trembling hand.
HEADLINE: NORTHSTAR SYSTEMS CEO SUSPENDED AMID FINANCIAL MISCONDUCT AND ETHICAL AUDIT.
"No, no, no!" Madison muttered to herself, her eyes darting across the article. "He was supposed to protect me!"
She dialed Ryan's personal number four times, but it went straight to voicemail. Panic setting in, she dialed his direct line at the office.
It was answered on the second ring.
"Ryan?!" Madison blurted out instantly. "Ryan, you need to answer your phone! Ethan took my car, he froze our joint checking account, and the press is calling my mother! You told me yesterday that even if Claire found out, your position at the company was completely secure!"
"Mr. Whitmore is no longer occupying this office, Ms. Hale."
Madison froze. The voice on the other end of the line was not Ryan's. It was cool, cultured, and entirely composed.
"Claire?" Madison whispered, her breath catching in her throat.
"Hello, Madison," I said smoothly, leaning back in the leather chair that, until an hour ago, had belonged to my husband. "I suggest you check your corporate email inbox."
"What did you do?" Madison demanded, her voice rising in panic. "You can't fire me! I report directly to the Chief Executive Officer!"
"The Chief Executive Officer has been suspended," I reminded her. "And as interim chair of the board's special ethics committee, I have personally authorized the termination of your employment with Northstar Systems for gross violation of corporate ethics and unauthorized usage of corporate funds."
"You're ruined!" Madison shrieked into the phone, abandoning any pretense of sweetness. "Ryan loves me! Do you hear me? He came to my bed because you were too cold, too busy playing lady of the manor to give him what he needed! He promised me he was leaving you!"
"Madison," I said, my voice dropping an octave into pure velvet steel. "Ryan promised you a world he didn't own. He gave you luxury suites paid for with my family's money. He promised you promotions funded by my capital. He used you as an escape from his own mediocrity, and the moment his foundation cracked, he let you take the full weight of the fall."
"He won't let you do this!" she screamed.
"He doesn't have a choice," I replied. "And right now, Ethan’s legal team is handing the Rhode Island state prosecutor full documentation of the wire transfers you made from Northstar accounts into your private accounts over the past six months."
Madison’s breath hitched. "What transfers? I didn't transfer anything!"
"Ryan did," I said softly. "Using your corporate login credentials to cover his tracks. Did you really think he loved you, Madison? Or did he just need a convenient fall guy if the financial auditors ever closed in?"
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Silence hung heavy on the line. I could hear Madison’s ragged breathing over the phone as the trap Ryan had built around her pulled tight.
"Have a good afternoon, Ms. Hale," I said, and hung up.
