Chapter 6 - The Sister Who Had Been Lied ToAubrey Harrison read the letter three times.
Then she sat down on the floor of Roman’s private dining room and cried like someone had broken something inside her that could never be repaired.
“My mother told me my father left before I was born.”
Khloe stood across from her.
“She lied.”
“No.”
Aubrey shook her head violently.
“Dad would have told me.”
“He was planning to.”
“How do you know?”
“Because he wrote it.”
Khloe placed another envelope on the table.
This one bore Aubrey’s name.
Aubrey stared at it for almost a minute before opening it.
Her tears began before she reached the second paragraph.
Michael had explained everything.
He and Aubrey’s mother, Elizabeth, had dated briefly years before Michael married Khloe’s mother.
Elizabeth disappeared after discovering she was pregnant.
Years later, after both had been widowed, they reconnected.
Michael learned Aubrey was his biological daughter shortly before marrying Elizabeth.
Elizabeth made him promise not to tell Aubrey until she was ready.
Then she died.
Michael kept postponing the truth.
He believed there would always be another year.
There wasn’t.
Aubrey whispered, “He knew.”
Khloe nodded.
“All those years…”
“He knew.”
Aubrey pressed the letter to her mouth.
“He loved me.”
Khloe’s anger did not disappear.
But it changed.
“He did.”
Aubrey looked at her.
“Why didn’t he give me half the company?”
There it was.
The old wound.
Khloe sat across from her.
“He explains that too.”
Aubrey lowered her eyes.
Michael had left Aubrey assets worth nearly twenty million dollars.
Khloe received controlling shares because she had spent six years training inside Harrison Logistics.
Aubrey had repeatedly told Michael she wanted nothing to do with operations.
Derek had convinced her that the difference meant rejection.
“I believed him,” Aubrey whispered.
Khloe asked, “How long have you known Derek?”
Aubrey closed her eyes.
“Six years.”
Khloe’s stomach tightened.
“Before he joined Harrison Logistics.”
“Yes.”
“Were you together?”
Aubrey hesitated.
“Briefly.”
Khloe stood.
The betrayal felt new again.
“You dated my fiancé?”
“Before you knew him.”
“And never thought to mention it?”
“He told me it didn’t matter.”
“Of course he did.”
Aubrey cried harder.
Khloe turned away.
Roman watched from the far side of the room but did not interfere.
Aubrey whispered, “He found me after Mom died. I was angry at Dad. I thought Dad loved you more.”
“And Derek encouraged that.”
“Yes.”
“He used you to get inside the company.”
Aubrey nodded.
“I introduced him to Dad.”
Khloe closed her eyes.
There it was.
The entire bridge.
Derek had used one sister to reach the other.
Aubrey continued.
“At first he wanted documents. Old contracts. Vendor lists. I thought he was trying to impress your dad.”
“And the shell companies?”
“Later.”
“Why?”
“He told me Dad was hiding my inheritance.”
“So you stole it.”
“Yes.”
The answer was quiet.
No excuses.
For the first time, Khloe appreciated that.
Aubrey looked up.
“I’m going to turn myself in.”
Khloe stared.
Roman finally moved.
“Talk to a lawyer first.”
Aubrey laughed through tears.
“The mafia boss is telling me to get legal counsel?”
“I contain multitudes.”
Khloe almost smiled despite herself.
Almost.
Aubrey looked at Roman.
“Derek has another plan.”
Khloe’s expression sharpened.
“What?”
“He knew the board might remove him.”
“How?”
“He said if that happened, Harrison Logistics wouldn’t survive forty-eight hours.”
Khloe sat again.
“Explain.”
Aubrey wiped her face.
“Derek arranged something with the pension fund.”
Khloe’s blood chilled.
Harrison Logistics employed nearly four thousand people.
“What did he do?”
“I don’t know everything.”
“Tell me what you know.”
“He kept saying there was a trigger.”
Roman’s gaze sharpened.
“What kind?”
“A change-of-control clause.”
Khloe frowned.
“There was no change of control.”
Aubrey whispered, “There will be if certain lenders demand repayment.”
Roman understood first.
“He cross-collateralized the employee pension obligations.”
Rachel cursed.
Khloe looked between them.
“In English.”
Rachel answered.
“If Derek linked pension guarantees to the emergency debt, and the debt defaults, creditors could claim pension-linked reserves.”
Khloe went pale.
“He used employees’ retirement money as leverage?”
“Potentially.”
Roman was already on his phone.
“Vincent. Get me every amendment Pierce signed in the last nine months.”
Khloe stood.
“How long do we have?”
Aubrey looked at the clock.
“Tomorrow morning.”
“Why?”
“Derek said something becomes irreversible at nine.”
Khloe did not sleep.
By 3:20 a.m., Roman’s legal team found it.
A financing amendment signed by Derek under delegated CFO authority.
The company’s pension reserve account had been pledged as secondary collateral to Northstar Acquisition Group.
Illegal?
Probably.
Voidable?
Eventually.
But at 9:00 a.m., Northstar intended to declare default and sweep the reserve account before litigation could stop it.
One hundred and twelve million dollars.
Khloe stared at the figure.
“He was going to steal from retirees.”
Roman corrected her.
“He was going to hold their pensions hostage.”
Khloe looked at him.
“What can stop it?”
“Paying off the Northstar obligation before nine.”
“How much?”
“Forty-six million.”
Khloe laughed.
“I don’t have forty-six million dollars.”
Roman did.
They both knew it.
He reached for his phone.
Khloe stopped him.
“No.”
His eyes narrowed.
“What?”
“I’m not replacing Derek’s debt with yours.”
“This is different.”
“Why? Because you’re nicer to me?”
Roman’s jaw tightened.
“This is not the time.”
“This is exactly the time.”
Four months earlier, Khloe had accepted Derek’s financial rescue without asking enough questions.
She would not do that again.
“If you lend Harrison forty-six million dollars, what do you get?”
“Interest.”
“What else?”
“Nothing.”
“No shares?”
“No.”
“No board seat?”
“No.”
“No warrants?”
“No.”
She studied him.
Roman seemed irritated.
Good.
She continued.
“And if I say no?”
“Then I find another solution.”
“Why?”
He stared at her.
“Because four thousand people should not lose retirement security because Derek Pierce wants revenge.”
Khloe’s expression softened slightly.
Then Roman added, “And because I’m tired of watching you look like you haven’t eaten in two days.”
There it was.
Something personal.
Khloe looked away.
Dangerous.
Very dangerous.
Not because Roman frightened her.
Because increasingly, he didn’t.
She whispered, “I can’t owe you forty-six million.”
Roman stepped closer.
“Then don’t.”
“What?”
“Buy my loan.”
“With what?”
“Harrison Logistics has receivables worth sixty-eight million due within ninety days.”
She stared.
Roman continued.
“I’ll purchase them at ninety-seven cents on the dollar. That gives you enough liquidity to clear Northstar.”
Khloe understood.
Not a personal loan.
Not shares.
An ordinary factoring transaction.
“You’d lose money.”
“A little.”
“Why?”
Roman smiled faintly.
“Maybe I’m terrible at lending.”
She almost laughed.
At 8:41 the transaction closed.
At 8:52 Harrison Logistics wired forty-six million dollars to Northstar.
At 8:57 Rachel sent formal notice that the debt was satisfied.
At 9:00 exactly, Derek attempted to sweep the pension account.
The transaction failed.
Khloe watched the rejection appear on-screen.
TRANSFER DENIED — OBLIGATION SATISFIED.
For the first time in months, she felt powerful.
Then her phone rang.
Derek.
She answered.
Neither spoke for several seconds.
Finally, Derek said, “Roman paid you.”
Khloe looked at Roman.
“No.”
“He owns you now.”
“No.”
“He’ll eventually ask for the company.”
Khloe smiled.
“You still don’t understand.”
“Understand what?”
“I stopped giving men ownership of my choices.”
Silence.
Then Derek’s voice changed.
“You think you won?”
“No.”
Khloe looked at Aubrey.
Her sister had agreed to cooperate with federal investigators.
“We’re just getting started.”
Derek laughed softly.
“You should ask Aubrey what else she signed.”
Khloe’s smile vanished.
She looked at her sister.
Aubrey went pale.
“What is he talking about?”
Derek hung up.
Khloe slowly lowered the phone.
Aubrey whispered, “There was one more document.”
“What document?”
“I thought it was only a trust amendment.”
Khloe’s blood ran cold.
“What did it do?”
Aubrey began to cry.
“It gave Derek authority over my inheritance if I died.”
Roman went still.
Khloe stared at her sister.
May you like
Then Aubrey said the part that changed the room.
“And three days ago, Derek increased my life insurance to twenty-five million dollars.”
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