Chapter 50 - The Phantom Investor
|
The royal visit was a resounding success, culminating in a highly publicized, glowing remark from Queen Helene about the "unparalleled authenticity" of American luxury at the St. Moritz. The hotel's prestige skyrocketed, but with increased visibility came new, unseen predators.
Sienna was in her office reviewing the quarterly profit margins when Victoria walked in, holding a thick manila envelope. Her stepmother’s face was drawn, her usual poised demeanor replaced by a look of deep concern.
"Sienna, we have a problem," Victoria said, closing the office door and locking it. "I’ve been monitoring the minor shareholdings of the St. Moritz trust. We’ve always had a small percentage of floating shares from your father’s early days."
"Yes, about five percent," Sienna confirmed, setting down her pen. "It’s negligible. They carry no voting power."
"They didn't," Victoria corrected, placing the envelope on the desk. "Over the past three weeks, a single, anonymous shell company registered in the Cayman Islands has been aggressively buying up those shares at triple the market value. They just crossed the eight percent threshold."
Sienna frowned, pulling the documents from the envelope. "Eight percent isn't enough for a hostile takeover."
"No, but it is enough to demand a seat at the annual shareholder meeting. It is enough to request internal financial audits and disrupt our daily operations with legal injunctions," Victoria explained, her voice tight. "Someone is trying to get their foot in the door. They are probing our armor."
"Do we know who is behind the shell company?" Sienna asked, scanning the redacted legal filings.
"I reached out to my old contacts in the financial district," Victoria said, her eyes darkening. "The shell company is called Obsidian Holdings. But the funding structure... it looks exactly like the aggressive acquisition tactics Vanguard used to employ."
"Julian Thorne is gone," Sienna pointed out. "Vanguard ousted him."
"Julian is gone," Victoria agreed. "But Vanguard is still a multi-billion dollar conglomerate, and their new CEO, Evelyn Vance—no relation to us, thankfully—is notoriously ruthless. If she is targeting the St. Moritz, she won't attack us directly. She will bleed us from the inside."
May you like
Sienna leaned back in her chair, staring at the golden "SM" embossed on her stationary. The war wasn't over; the enemy had simply changed their face.
"Find out everything you can about Obsidian Holdings," Sienna ordered. "We need to know exactly who is knocking at our door before we answer it."
