Chapter 4 - THE UNSEEN THREADS
By 7:00 AM, the rain had stopped, leaving the grounds of Cross Mansion wrapped in a thick, gloomy fog. Inside the house, the atmosphere was suffocating.
Elena was in the industrial kitchen, preparing a light breakfast tray. Her hands trembled slightly as she sliced fresh fruit. She hadn't slept a wink. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Richard Vance’s cold, ruthless smile or Nathaniel’s searching, piercing gaze.
Arthur, the elderly head butler, entered the kitchen, carrying a fresh stack of morning newspapers. He laid one on the stainless-steel counter next to Elena.
The front-page headline of the City Chronicle was bold and brutal:
"CROSS ENTERPRISES IN TURMOIL: BILLIONAIRE SCION CANCELS SOCIETY WEDDING OF THE CENTURY OVER HOUSEMAID'S CHILD."
Below the headline was a blurry photo taken by a guest’s phone—Nathaniel kneeling on the ballroom floor, wiping chocolate off Lily’s small hand, while Vanessa stood in the background, her face contorted in anger.
"It's everywhere," Arthur said grimly, shaking his head. "The tabloids are having a field day. They are painting Mr. Nathaniel as unhinged and impulsive. The stock price opened five percent down in pre-market trading."
Elena pressed her lips together, feeling a fresh wave of guilt. "Is Mr. Cross still here?"
"He left for the corporate headquarters twenty minutes ago," Arthur replied. "He looked like he was marching into a war zone. He spent half the night in his late father's vault down in the basement, going through old legal boxes."
He listened to me, Elena thought, a mix of hope and terror washing over her. He checked the port audit files.
"Mama?"
Elena turned to see Lily standing in the doorway of the kitchen, rubbing her eyes. She wore a simple yellow dress, her dark curls bouncing as she walked over and wrapped her small arms around Elena’s legs.
"Good morning, sweetheart," Elena said, lifting the little girl into her arms and pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Did you sleep okay?"
"I had a bad dream," Lily whispered, hiding her face in Elena’s neck. "The lady in the red dress was screaming at me."
Elena held her closer, her heart aching. " That mean lady is gone, Lily. She's never coming back here. You don't ever have to be afraid again."
"Is the nice man with the napkin still here?" Lily asked innocently. "He cleaned my fingers."
Elena swallowed the lump in her throat. "He's at work, baby. He's... he's fighting a big battle today."
Meanwhile, on the top floor of the Cross Enterprises tower in the financial district, the atmosphere was lethal.
The glass-walled boardroom overlooked the foggy city skyline. Twelve board members sat around a massive oval conference table. At the head of the table sat Richard Vance, surrounded by his team of corporate attorneys.
Nathaniel sat at the opposite end, completely unbothered, sipping black coffee.
"The evidence of instability is clear," Richard declared, his voice echoing through the silent room as he gestured to a presentation screen showing the crashing stock ticker. "Nathaniel Cross’s erratic behavior last night cost this company fifty million dollars in market value in less than twelve hours. He breached the terms of our strategic merger and demonstrated that he lacks the cold professionalism required to lead a Fortune 500 company."
Richard looked around the table, seeing nods of agreement from several nervous board members. "Therefore, under Section 4 of the corporate bylaws, I move for an immediate vote of no confidence to remove Nathaniel Cross as Chief Executive Officer."
"I second the motion," called out Arthur Sterling, a senior board member who owed millions in gambling debts to a casino group controlled by Vance.
"The motion has been made and seconded," Richard said, a triumphant smirk appearing on his face. "All those in favor—"
"Before we vote," Nathaniel interrupted smoothly, setting his coffee cup down with a soft click, "I believe the board should review a recent document retrieved from the 2020 Port Expansion Audit."
Richard’s smirk vanished. His hand froze on his walking cane. "That audit was settled six years ago, Nathaniel. It has no relevance to this meeting."
"It has total relevance," Nathaniel said, pressing a button on his laptop.
The main presentation screen shifted from the stock ticker to a scanned copy of a secret offshore bank transfer originating from Vance Pharmaceuticals and terminating in a shell account in the Cayman Islands.
"Six years ago, fifty million dollars was embezzled from the port expansion fund," Nathaniel said, his voice ringing with absolute authority. "The investigation was abruptly dropped after the lead auditor, Julian Vance, tragic died in an auto accident. But the money didn't vanish. It was used to purchase the thirty-five percent share of Cross Enterprises that Richard Vance currently holds."
The boardroom broke into immediate, frantic murmurs. Board members leaned in to inspect the documents displayed on the screen.
Richard stood up abruptly, his face flushed with rage. "This is a fabrication! A desperate, libelous attempt to slander my name!"
"If it's a fabrication, then you won't mind if I submit these original bank routing tokens to the Federal Financial Crimes Division at nine o'clock," Nathaniel said, leaning back in his chair and meeting Richard’s furious glare. "If you push for a vote of no confidence today, Richard, I will publish these documents to the press before lunch. You might take my CEO title, but you will spend the rest of your life in a federal penitentiary."
The silence in the boardroom was absolute. Richard stared at Nathaniel, his knuckles turning white as he gripped his cane. He realized he had been completely outmaneuvered.
"Where did you get these?" Richard spat, his voice dropping to a deadly whisper that only Nathaniel could hear. "These records were sealed in Julian’s private safe. No one had access to them."
Nathaniel smiled coldly, though inside, his mind was racing back to the quiet housemaid who had given him the exact clue he needed.
"Let's just say a good friend reminded me where to look," Nathaniel replied quietly. "Now, Richard... do you still wish to proceed with the vote?"
Richard glared at him for three agonizing seconds. Then, slowly, he buttoned his suit jacket, turned to his lawyers, and growled, "The meeting is adjourned."
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As Richard stormed out of the boardroom, he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed a private number.
"Find out everything about the staff at Cross Mansion," Richard whispered furiously into the receiver as he walked toward the elevator. "Someone inside that house is feeding Nathaniel information that belonged to my dead son. Find out who it is, and neutralize them."
