Chapter 6 - The Family Meeting
The conference room at noon felt like a pressure cooker.
Eleanor Pierce sat at the end of the table,
her face a mask of frozen rage.
She was wearing black today,
as if she were attending a funeral.
Nathan sat beside her,
looking like he hadn't slept in a week.
His eyes were bloodshot,
his suit wrinkled.
Across from them sat their team of high-priced lawyers,
men with expensive briefcases and worried expressions.
I sat next to Elias,
my hands folded neatly on the table.
The ledger sat between us,
a silent bomb waiting to explode.
Eleanor didn't look at Elias.
She looked directly at me.
“Mara,”
she said,
her voice dripping with venom.
“I expected better of you.”
“To take a family heirloom and use it for blackmail?”
“It’s beneath you.”
I didn't blink.
“What’s beneath me,
Eleanor,
is having to sit at a wedding next to my husband’s mistress,”
I replied.
“What’s beneath me is having my life funded by a fraud.”
Nathan tried to speak,
but Elias held up a hand.
“Let’s stick to the facts,
shall we?”
Elias said,
opening a folder.
“We have evidence of two million dollars in diverted marital funds to one Brooke Landon.”
“We have photos of infidelity in four countries.”
“And of course,”
he tapped the ledger,
“we have thirty years of tax evasion and security fraud.”
The Pierce lawyers shifted uncomfortably.
The lead attorney,
a man named Miller,
cleared his throat.
“We are prepared to offer a generous settlement,
Elias.”
“Five million,
the condo in Florida,
and a non-disclosure agreement.”
I laughed,
the sound echoing in the cold room.
“Five million?”
“The Pierce Group is worth billions.”
“And the fraud in that book is worth twenty years in prison.”
“Try again.”
Eleanor slammed her hand on the table.
“You wouldn't dare!”
“If you sink this company,
you lose everything too!”
“You’re a Pierce!”
“No,”
I said,
standing up.
“I was a Pierce.”
“Now,
I’m just the woman who knows where you buried the bodies.”
“My offer is on the table.”
“Seventy percent of the assets.”
“The estate.”
“And Nathan’s resignation.”
“You have one hour to sign,”
I said,
looking at the clock on the wall.
“Or I walk out of this office and go directly to the federal building.”
I walked out of the room,
Elias following close behind.
As the door closed,
May you like
I heard Eleanor start to scream at Nathan.
The dynasty was eating itself.
