Chapter 14 - Boardroom Fallout
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By Thursday morning, the corporate world of Lumina Grid began to collapse.
Lumina Grid was a publicly traded energy technology firm, reliant heavily on municipal contracts and institutional investor confidence. When Natalie Brooks formally served Lumina’s Board of Directors with copies of the forensic audit and the burner phone transcripts, the board called an emergency session.
Adrian was summoned to the corporate headquarters downtown at 9:00 AM.
He arrived expecting to spin the situation as a personal "family dispute," but he walked into a trap.
Sitting around the long oak conference table were seven board members, flanked by the company's chief legal counsel and two independent forensic auditors.
"Adrian," the Board Chairman, Arthur Vance, said coldly, slamming a stack of papers onto the table. "Care to explain why $900,000 of company capital was routed to an undisclosed Delaware LLC managed by your mistress’s cousin?"
Adrian’s face turned bright red. "Arthur, this is a smear campaign orchestrated by my estranged wife! She’s mentally unstable and—"
"Save it, Adrian," Vance interrupted harshly. "We’ve already verified the wire transfers with the bank. You used corporate funds to finance your personal affair and cover up marital asset hiding."
"I built this company!" Adrian shouted, slamming his fist on the table. "You can't do this to me!"
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"As of this moment," Vance announced, "the Board has voted unanimously to place you on indefinite, unpaid administrative leave. Your corporate access is revoked, your company car is seized, and our legal team is cooperating fully with the District Attorney's office."
Security guards stepped into the conference room, escorting a disgraced Adrian Caldwell out of the building he had spent six years bragging about.
