Chapter 8 - The Truth of the Success
A week later,
I walked into my new office at Sterling Grace.
It was the same building,
but everything felt different.
The marble lobby was the same,
but the atmosphere was one of respect,
not fear.
The board members who had survived the purge were waiting for me,
their heads bowed.
I sat at the head of the table,
looking at the faces of the men who had watched Chloe humiliate me.
"Let’s get one thing clear,"
I said,
my voice cool and professional.
"I am not my husband."
"And I am certainly not the woman you saw in the lobby."
"I am Vivienne Sterling."
"And this company exists because my family allowed it to."
I opened a file on the desk and pulled out a list of names.
"These are the investors who 'magically' appeared when Dominic was failing,"
I said,
sliding the list across the table.
"They were all Sterling shell companies."
"The contracts that landed on his desk?"
"They were favors called in by my brother Marcus."
"The loans that were approved overnight?"
"They were personally guaranteed by Victor."
The board members looked at the list in stunned silence.
"Dominic thought he was a genius,"
I continued.
"He thought he was the architect of his own success."
"But he was just a puppet in a play he didn't understand."
"He was only successful because I wanted him to be."
"And now,"
"I want him to be nothing."
I stood up,
straightening my tailored suit.
"We are moving the headquarters to New York,"
I announced.
"I want this building sold by the end of the month."
"I want every trace of the 'Dominic era' erased."
As I walked out of the boardroom,
I felt a sense of power I had never known.
It wasn't the power of money,
it was the power of ownership.
I owned my life again.
I went back down to the lobby,
where Chloe had once stood.
There was a new secretary there,
a young woman who looked up and smiled.
"Good morning,
Ms. Sterling,"
she said.
"Good morning,"
I replied.
"It’s a beautiful day,
isn't it?"
"Yes,
ma'am,"
May you like
she said.
"It certainly is."
