Chapter 4 - The Snake in the Boardroom
While Emily was being wrapped in warm velvet robes and served a hot three-course meal in the dining room of Northridge Manor, a very different kind of meeting was taking place six miles away in the upper penthouse of the Vanguard Tower.
The boardroom was a gleaming fortress of glass and dark mahogany, overlooking the glittering lights of the stormy city.
Sitting at the head of the long conference table was Richard Vance—Eleanor’s younger half-brother and the Senior Vice President of Vanguard Global Logistics. Richard was a handsome, polished man in his late forties, wearing an Italian suit and a gold watch. But behind his charming smile sat a desperate, calculating man buried under millions of dollars in secret gambling debts to overseas syndicates.
Standing beside him was Victor Vance—his distant nephew, looking wet, humiliated, and trembling in his ruined clothes.
"You idiot!" Richard hissed, slamming his glass of scotch onto the mahogany table, sending dark amber liquid splashing onto his papers. "You were supposed to keep the sidewalk clear! How did she end up lying outside your damn coffee shop?!"
"I... I didn't know it was her, Uncle Richard!" Victor whimpered, clutching his hands together. "She was wearing a dirty hoodie! She looked like a beggar! I tried to clear her away, but that stupid dish girl ran out—"
"The dish girl ruined everything!" Richard snarled, pacing back and forth across the floor like a caged animal. "If Eleanor had remained on that sidewalk for another ten minutes, her blood sugar would have dropped past the point of recovery! The coroners would have ruled it an accidental diabetic shock caused by her known medical condition! I would have taken over the presidency at tomorrow’s shareholder meeting!"
Richard grabbed Victor by his wet collar, pulling him close, his breath smelling of expensive alcohol. "Now Eleanor is alive! She’s at her estate! And she knows the crash wasn't a coincidence!"
"What... what are we going to do?" Victor stammered, tears of fear welling in his eyes. "She already stripped the franchise lease! She blacklisted me! The guards dragged me out like a dog!"
"Shut up and let me think!" Richard yelled, shoving Victor back into a chair.
Richard walked over to the floor-to-ceiling glass window, watching the rain strike the glass. Tomorrow morning at nine o'clock, the annual Vanguard Shareholder Conference was scheduled to take place. During the meeting, a crucial vote was set to occur regarding the authorization of a multi-billion-dollar audit into Vanguard Logistics—the very division Richard had been secretly embezzling money from for three years.
If Eleanor showed up to that meeting tomorrow and executed the audit, Richard wouldn't just be fired. He would spend the rest of his life in a federal penitentiary.
"She has a new weakness," Richard whispered suddenly, a slow, wicked smile creeping back onto his face.
Victor blinked. "A weakness? Eleanor?"
"The dish girl," Richard sneered, turning around. "Arthur’s informants in the estate say Eleanor brought the girl to Northridge. She’s treating her like a saint, keeping her in the guest wing."
"So what?" Victor asked, confused. "She’s just a poor nobody from the slums."
"Exactly," Richard chuckled, stepping over to his desk and picking up a encrypted satellite phone. "She’s a poor nobody with no family, no connections, and a criminal record if we play our cards right. If something tragic happens to that girl inside Northridge Manor... or if she’s framed for theft or attempted murder... Eleanor will be thrown into a massive public scandal right before the vote."
Richard dialed a number on the phone, bringing it to his ear.
"Marcus," Richard said into the receiver, his voice dropping into a sinister whisper. "I have a new target. The girl staying in the west wing of Northridge Manor. I want her framed for poisoning Eleanor’s insulin supply tonight. Make it quick, and make it look clean."
May you like
Richard hung up the phone, turning back to Victor with cold, ruthless eyes.
"You wanted revenge on that girl for making you lose your job, Victor?" Richard smiled darkly. "By tomorrow morning, Emily Ward will be sitting in a police cell... and Vanguard Group will belong to me."
