Chapter 10
The amendment should have solved everything.
Instead, it created a new problem.
It was a photocopy.
Not the original.
Margaret examined every page.
“The signature looks authentic.”
Dad said, “Because it is.”
“You recognize it?”
“I watched Elaine sign thousands of documents.”
“That won’t be enough.”
Daniel paced.
“The original was stolen from my apartment.”
“Probably.”
“So whoever stole it has the only enforceable copy?”
Margaret shook her head.
“Not necessarily. If it was executed properly, another copy may exist with a lawyer, accountant, witness, or notary.”
Dad suddenly stood.
“Harold Kim.”
“Who?”
“Our estate attorney at the time.”
Margaret stared.
“He retired.”
“Where?”
“Arizona.”
She was already searching.
Two minutes later, she found a number.
No answer.
We left a message.
The board vote was nine hours away.
I didn’t sleep.
At seven the next morning, we entered Bennett Capital headquarters through the underground garage.
Cameras packed the street outside.
Victor had made sure the story was public.
The spoiled Bennett family fighting over billions.
That was the headline now.
The assault had become background noise.
I hated how easily powerful people could change the subject.
The boardroom was already full.
Victor sat in my father’s chair.
That bothered me more than it should have.
He smiled when I entered.
“Emily.”
I didn’t answer.
Daniel sat beside me.
Dad sat on my other side.
Margaret remained against the wall as counsel.
Victor opened the meeting.
“This is painful for all of us.”
I almost laughed.
He continued.
“But Bennett Capital cannot survive if leadership decisions are driven by personal revenge.”
My cheek was still purple.
He looked directly at it while saying that.
One director shifted uncomfortably.
Victor presented slides.
Caldwell’s threatened lawsuit.
Projected losses.
Potential investor withdrawals.
Then he displayed the viral restaurant video.
He paused on the frame where Richard slapped me.
“This was reprehensible.”
He waited.
“But one criminal act by a borrower does not permit us to disregard fiduciary obligations.”
I raised my hand.
Victor looked surprised.
“This isn’t school, Emily.”
“No. In school, lying usually has consequences.”
Daniel coughed to hide a laugh.
Victor’s smile disappeared.
I stood.
“You told this board you went home after dinner Friday.”
“Yes.”
“Sophie Caldwell says you went to her house with Richard.”
“She is mistaken.”
“Did you receive payments from Shaw Advisory Partners?”
His face changed.
Only slightly.
“That company was mine.”
“Did it receive money from Caldwell Development?”
Margaret had warned me not to accuse him directly.
Questions were safer.
Victor leaned back.
“Many companies retained Shaw Advisory before I joined Bennett.”
“How much did Caldwell pay you?”
“That is irrelevant.”
“One million?”
No answer.
“Four million?”
A director looked toward Victor.
He frowned.
“What is she talking about?”
Victor slammed his folder shut.
“This is an ambush.”
I said, “Answer the question.”
He stared at me.
“No.”
That answer mattered more than any confession.
The room shifted.
Victor tried to continue.
Dad stayed silent.
I realized why.
He was letting me do this.
Not because he couldn’t.
Because I had asked him to stop deciding for me.
Victor finally called for the vote.
Margaret stepped forward.
“Before the vote, Ms. Bennett has a statement regarding the Elaine Bennett Family Trust.”
Victor became very still.
“What statement?”
I looked at him.
“My mother amended the trust.”
His eyes told me everything.
He knew.
He knew exactly what document had been stolen.
I continued.
“The amendment transfers voting authority to me if a Bennett officer concealed material fraud related to Caldwell.”
Victor laughed.
“Convenient.”
“It was signed twelve years ago.”
“Do you have the original?”
There it was.
Too quick.
Too confident.
I tilted my head.
“How do you know I don’t?”
His face tightened.
The directors noticed.
Victor recovered.
“Because if you did, counsel would have circulated it.”
Margaret said, “We have a copy.”
“A copy is not enough.”
A voice came from the speakerphone.
“Actually, it may be.”
Everyone turned.
Margaret’s assistant had connected a call.
An elderly man appeared on screen.
White hair.
Glasses.
Harold Kim.
He looked annoyed.
“Daniel, you people have terrible timing. It’s five in the morning here.”
Dad almost laughed from relief.
“Harold.”
Victor went pale.
Harold held up a file.
“I received Margaret Sloan’s message.”
He adjusted his glasses.
“I have the executed counterpart of Elaine Bennett’s final amendment.”
Nobody breathed.
Victor stood.
“This meeting is adjourned.”
“No,” I said.
He stared at me.
I didn’t raise my voice.
“No, Victor. Sit down.”
For the first time in my life, a room full of men twice my age waited for me.
Harold confirmed the document.
Witnesses.
Notarization.
Execution date.
Everything.
Margaret distributed electronic copies.
The clause was clear.
The board’s counsel reviewed it for twenty minutes.
Then he looked at me.
“Ms. Bennett, pending formal verification, you appear to hold the voting rights.”
Victor’s face looked gray.
I stood.
“My vote is not to remove my father.”
Dad exhaled.
Victor closed his eyes.
I continued.
“But I am also voting to place Daniel Bennett Sr. on temporary administrative leave.”
My father turned toward me.
Everyone froze.
Victor stared.
Even he looked shocked.
I faced Dad.
“You said I should vote for what I believe is right.”
He said nothing.
“I believe you ignored warnings twelve years ago.”
His eyes lowered.
“I believe this company needs an independent investigation.”
Daniel whispered, “Emily.”
I kept going.
“And I believe Victor Shaw should be suspended immediately, with all access revoked, until investigators determine whether he received undisclosed payments from Caldwell.”
Now the room erupted.
Victor shouted.
“You have no idea what you’re doing.”
I looked at him.
“That makes two of us.”
The vote passed.
Eight to three.
Security entered.
Victor stood slowly.
He gathered his papers.
Then he leaned close to me.
“You think your mother gave you power.”
His voice was almost a whisper.
“She gave you a target.”
I held his gaze.
“No.”
I touched the fading bruise on my cheek.
“Richard did that.”
Security escorted him out.
My father remained seated.
He looked at me.
I expected anger.
Instead he said, “Your mother would have voted the same way.”
My throat tightened.
Before I could answer, Margaret’s phone rang.
She listened.
Then her face went blank.
“What?”
She ended the call.
“Police searched Victor’s office.”
My heart pounded.
“They found the missing original trust amendment.”
Daniel stood.
“That proves he burglarized my apartment.”
Margaret shook her head.
“Not by itself.”
“What else?”
She looked at me.
“They found something else in the same safe.”
A photograph.
Me leaving my apartment.
Taken three weeks before Richard ever slapped me.
On the back, someone had written two words.
EMILY BENNETT.
Underneath was a date.
May you like
Friday.
The night Richard came to my restaurant.
