Chapter 5 - THE AUDIT OF AGONY
Monday morning came like a storm.
I sat in the boardroom of Ellis & Associates.
This was my father's firm.
It was the source of the family’s pride.
And it was currently bleeding.
I wasn't there as a daughter.
I was there as the majority shareholder of the bank that held their debt.
My father sat at the head of the table.
He looked tired.
He looked old.
“Who are you?”
he asked the lawyers I had sent.
“We are here on behalf of The Obsidian Group,”
one of them said.
“We are calling in the loan on the Sterling expansion.”
My father’s hand shook as he reached for his water.
“The Sterling expansion?”
“That’s my son-in-law’s project.”
“It’s a separate entity.”
“Not according to the cross-collateralization agreement,”
the lawyer replied.
“You signed the guarantee,
Mr. Ellis.”
“And the Sterling Group has failed to meet the first capital call.”
The door opened.
I walked in.
I was wearing a black suit.
I had my hair pulled back.
I looked like the woman who had clawed at the marble.
My father stared at me.
“Maya?”
“What are you doing here?”
“Go home.”
“This is a business meeting.”
I sat down at the table.
I didn't look at him.
I looked at the documents.
“I am home,
Dad.”
“I’m here to check on my investment.”
“What are you talking about?”
he stammered.
“You’re a cook.”
I pushed a paper across the desk.
It was the transfer of ownership.
It showed that The Obsidian Group had purchased the bank’s distressed debt assets.
Including his.
“I’m the woman you owe fifty million dollars to,”
I said.
“And I’m here to tell you that you’re in default.”
The silence in the room was deafening.
It was the sound of an empire collapsing.
My father’s jaw dropped.
“How?”
“Where did you get that kind of money?”
I leaned forward.
“I didn't spend my twenties at country clubs,
Dad.”
“I spent them in kitchens.”
“Then in corporate boardrooms.”
“I started a catering company that turned into a food-tech firm.”
“I sold it to Julian Cross for three hundred million dollars.”
“Then I bought back your debt.”
“Because I knew Trent would mess up the expansion.”
“I knew he would gamble with the family name.”
“And I knew you would let him.”
My father reached for the phone.
“I’ll call your mother.”
“I’ll call Chloe.”
“Go ahead,”
I said.
“Tell them they’re being evicted from the estate.”
“Tell them the charity gala funds were frozen this morning.”
“Tell them that Chloe’s emerald dress was paid for with a credit card I just canceled.”
The phone fell from his hand.
“Maya,
please.”
“We’re family.”
I stood up.
I walked to the window.
I looked out at the city.
“Family doesn't watch family die,
Winston.”
“Family doesn't mock someone while their throat is closing.”
“You chose Chloe.”
“You chose the shine.”
“You chose the image.”
“Now you can live with the consequences.”
The lawyers began to pack their bags.
“You have forty-eight hours to vacate the office,”
one of them said.
“And the house?”
my father whispered.
“Thirty days,”
I said.
“Unless you can pay the balance.”
I walked out of the room.
The hallway felt long.
I felt a weight lifting off my shoulders.
But it wasn't over.
Chloe still thought she was untouchable.
She still thought she was the star of the show.
She didn't know that the stage was about to be burned down.
I went back to the restaurant.
Julian was waiting in the kitchen.
“It’s done,”
I told him.
“The bank is ours.”
“The firm is ours.”
Julian nodded.
“And Chloe?”
“She’s currently at the spa,”
he said.
“She doesn't know yet.”
I looked at the clock.
“Tell her to come to the restaurant tonight.”
“Tell her I have a peace offering.”
“Tell her I’m going to sign over my shares of the family trust to her.”
Julian smiled.
“You’re a cruel woman,
Maya.”
“No,”
I said.
May you like
“I’m just a woman who knows exactly how to finish a meal.”
“And the dessert is going to be unforgettable.”
