Chapter 2: The Price of Humiliation
“Eighty-five million?”” Daniel repeated.
His voice cracked on the last word.
My grandfather didn't answer him. He was too busy signaling to his attorney, Margaret Ellis, who had been sitting quietly near the aisle with a leather briefcase beside her.
Margaret rose immediately.
“Mr. Sterling, I'll contact the investment committee and suspend all pending authorization.””
“Do that,” Grandpa replied.
“And have our legal team review every document associated with the Crawford transaction.””
Robert hurried forward.
“Charles, please. Let's discuss this privately.””
Grandpa regarded him with an expression so cool it made Robert stop walking.
“Privately? Your son just pushed my granddaughter onto a marble floor in front of two hundred witnesses. Your wife applauded. Your company can wait its turn.””
Patricia's face reddened.
“This is a family disagreement! Surely business doesn't need to become personal.””
I almost laughed.
Ten minutes earlier, she had declared me unworthy of her son because I lacked the right family name.
Now she wanted to discuss professionalism.
“Mrs. Crawford,” I said, “you seemed perfectly comfortable making this personal when you were laughing at me.””
She lifted her chin.
“I was defending my son.””
“By celebrating when he pushed a woman to the floor?””
“He barely touched you!””
Several guests murmured in disbelief.
My wrist hurt so badly I could feel my pulse in my fingertips. I cradled it against my stomach and tried not to let Patricia see me wince.
Daniel noticed.
For a moment, I thought he might apologize.
Instead, he turned toward the audience.
“Everyone, please. This is a misunderstanding. Phoebe and I have been having problems for months.””
I stared at him.
“Really? Which months, Daniel? The month you asked me to help pay your father's overdue suppliers? Or the month you proposed to me in Napa and promised we'd never hide anything from each other?””
He looked annoyed.
“That's not what I meant.””
“Then explain it.””
He opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Jessica shifted beside him, her fingers tightening around the bouquet she had apparently brought for herself.
“Daniel,” she said, “you told me the engagement was already over.””
“It was.””
“No,” I said.
“You asked me yesterday whether we should move the honeymoon to Italy because the weather in Greece looked unpredictable.””
Jessica turned toward him.
“You said she was only staying until the wedding because her grandfather was paying for everything.””
My blood ran cold.
Daniel grabbed Jessica's elbow.
“Not now.””
She pulled away.
“You told me she knew!””
“I said not now.””
The sharpness in his voice silenced her, but it also changed something in her expression. For the first time, Jessica seemed to understand that the man standing beside her wasn't the man she thought she knew.
I looked at Daniel.
“Did you tell her that I was paying your father's suppliers?””
His silence answered me.
Three months earlier, Robert had approached me after a charity dinner. He'd explained that Crawford Industries was experiencing a temporary cash-flow crisis because two major clients had delayed payments.
He said layoffs were imminent.
Daniel had begged me to help him save the company his grandfather had built.
I had refused to use my family's influence.
But I had agreed to a personal loan through an independent investment firm, believing the money would protect hundreds of employees.
The loan had been repaid partially. The remaining balance was tied to the proposed merger.
I had told Daniel that I would never interfere with business decisions just because I loved him.
He had kissed my forehead and promised he would never ask me to.
Apparently, he had found another way to use me.
Robert approached me, his voice trembling.
“Phoebe, please. You know how much those employees mean to me. We have four hundred families depending on Crawford Industries.””
“And you knew how much I trusted your son.””
“I didn't know he would do this.””
“Did you know about Jessica?””
His eyes flickered toward the blonde woman.
That was answer enough.
“You knew,” I whispered.
Robert rubbed a hand over his mouth.
“I knew they had become close. Daniel assured me he would end things before the wedding.””
Jessica stared at him.
“You knew about us, too?””
“Jessica, this is not the time.””
“Of course it isn't,” she said bitterly.
“Apparently, there's never a convenient time to tell me the truth.””
Daniel stepped between them.
“Everybody needs to calm down. This has gotten out of hand.””
My grandfather finally looked directly at him.
“No, Daniel. What happened here was a deliberate choice. You had the opportunity to behave like a decent man, and you chose otherwise.””
Daniel forced a smile.
“Mr. Sterling, I respect your position, but surely you don't intend to destroy an entire company because of a personal disagreement.””
Grandpa leaned slightly on his cane.
“You're right about one thing. I don't make investment decisions based on personal disagreements.””
Daniel's shoulders relaxed.
Then Grandpa continued.
“I make them based on character, competence, and risk. Your behavior today has raised serious questions about all three.””
The smile vanished again.
Margaret's phone rang.
She listened for a few seconds before handing it to Grandpa.
“It's our general counsel,” she said.
“He says something has surfaced in the preliminary transaction review.””
Grandpa accepted the phone.
“Go ahead.””
A man's voice came through the speaker, clear enough for those nearby to hear.
“Mr. Sterling, we found an authorization submitted yesterday for a twelve-million-dollar transfer from Sterling Enterprises into a private holding company.””
Robert gripped the back of a chair.
“Twelve million? That's impossible. No transfer was approved.””
“Correct,” the attorney replied.
“The document appears to be an attempted authorization. It bears Miss Phoebe Bennett's electronic signature.””
I felt the room tilt.
“What?””
Grandpa turned toward me.
“Phoebe, did you authorize any such transfer?””
“No. I've never seen that document.””
The attorney continued.
“The holding company is registered under Jessica Moore's name. However, there is a second authorized beneficiary.””
Jessica's face went white.
Daniel took a step backward.
Patricia whispered, “Oh, my God.””
Grandpa's voice hardened.
“Read the beneficiary's name.””
There was a brief silence.
Then the attorney spoke.
“Daniel Crawford.””
For several seconds, the only sound in the ballroom was the faint rustle of Jessica's wedding dress.
Daniel shook his head violently.
“This is ridiculous. Someone is trying to frame me.””
Jessica stared at him.
“You told me the money was a bonus from an investment deal.””
“Jessica, shut up.””
“You said it was legal!””
He lunged toward her, but she stumbled away.
Grandpa raised one hand.
“Daniel, don't take another step.””
Daniel stopped.
His face had turned an ugly shade of red.
I looked at the man I had almost married and realized that the humiliation at the altar might not have been the worst thing he had done to me.
Because if someone had forged my signature to steal twelve million dollars, this wasn't simply a wedding gone wrong.
May you like
It was a crime.
And somebody had expected me to take the blame.
