Part 14
The board members began talking all at once, a wave of frantic chatter washing across the long mahogany table.
One of the oldest board members, Mr. Sterling, stood up, leaning on his cane.
“Miss Anderson,” he said, his voice trembling slightly. “Even if you hold the majority shares, you are young. You have no experience managing a multinational corporation. The market is already panicking over your stepmother’s arrest. If you take control now, our stock value will plummet to zero by the end of the day.”
“The stock value is plunging because this company has been operating on a foundation of fraud for the past five years, Mr. Sterling,” I replied calmly, looking around the room at each of them. “And many of you looked the other way because the dividends were high.”
I leaned forward, placing my hands flat on the table.
“I’m not here to run the day-to-day operations myself,” I continued, my voice steady and firm. “I am here to clean house. Effective immediately, I am appointing Theodore Whitman as the interim CEO to stabilize our market position. We are initiating a complete internal audit of every department.”
My father stepped forward, his eyes wild with anger and desperation.
“You can’t do this, Myra! I am your father! You are completely destroying everything I have worked for!”
“You didn't work for any of this, Dad,” I said, looking at him with nothing but pity. “You inherited a name and let your wife commit crimes to maintain it. You are barred from entering this building starting tomorrow. Security will escort you to your office to pack your personal belongings.”
“Myra, please!” he cried out, his voice cracking as he realized his entire lifestyle, his status, and his power were evaporating in front of his peers.
I turned my back on him, addressing the remaining board members.
May you like
“The audit begins at three o'clock. Anyone who has participated in or covered up Patricia or Julian’s financial discrepancies has until then to submit their resignation with legal compliance. After three, we turn everything over to the federal prosecutors. The meeting is adjourned.”
The board members scrambled to leave, practically running out of the room to consult their own attorneys, leaving my father standing alone in the corner, a broken man.
