Chapter 10 - THE FINANCIAL COLLAPSE
The next morning,
the news was filled with the scandal at The Glass House.
The headlines were brutal,
showing pictures of Nathaniel being led away by security,
his face covered by his hands.
The stocks had dipped slightly at the opening bell,
but recovered quickly after we released our official statement,
announcing my appointment as temporary CEO.
The investors had rallied behind me,
their confidence restored by the swiftness of our action and the transparency of our reports.
I sat in the corner office,
the morning sun warming the room,
as my assistant brought in a stack of newspapers.
“Mr. Whitmore’s bail has been set,”
she said,
her voice professional but containing a hint of excitement.
“But his personal assets have been frozen,
so he is having trouble finding the funds.”
“Let him stay there,”
I said,
not looking up from my tablet.
“The legal team has already filed the final divorce papers,
and we are requesting a summary judgment based on the fraud charges.”
He would get nothing from the estate,
not a single dollar,
not a single piece of furniture.
He would leave the marriage with exactly what he brought into it:
nothing.
Sienna had been released on a promise to cooperate,
her lawyers already negotiating a plea deal in exchange for her testimony against Nathaniel.
She had realized,
too late,
that the man she thought was her ticket to luxury was actually her ticket to a prison cell.
She had returned the red dress to my attorney,
packed in a cheap plastic bag,
without a word of apology.
I had told my assistant to burn it,
not because I was angry,
but because I did not want the smell of her betrayal in my house.
The dress had served its purpose,
it had been the red flag that drew the bull to the slaughter,
and now,
it was no longer needed.
I stood up,
walking to the glass window,
looking out at the city that was now mine to shape.
For so many years,
I had been content to be the force behind the curtain,
letting another person take the light.
I had believed that partnership meant sacrifice,
even if that sacrifice meant losing myself.
But I had learned that some people only use your light to hide their own darkness.
Never again.
From now on,
I would stand in the sun,
May you like
and if anyone tried to cast a shadow on me,
I would make sure they burned.
