Chairs scraped backward. Board members shouted in outrage. Richard stood up, his face turning purple as he stared at the offshore routing numbers clearly bearing Marcus's digital signature.
"Marcus!" Richard bellowed over the chaos. "Tell me she's lying! Tell me you didn't steal from your own company!"
Marcus slowly raised his head. He looked at the screaming board members, the people who had kissed his ring for years. Then he looked at the two enforcers standing perfectly still by the door. He knew what awaited him if he lied.
"I did it," Marcus whispered. His voice cracked, tears finally spilling over his eyelashes. "I stole the money. All of it."
The admission sucked the air out of the room. The shouting stopped, replaced by a horrified, disgusted silence.
"I brought the proof," I said, tapping the folio. "Including the falsified audits, the wire authorizations, and the dummy vendor contracts. You are entirely ruined, Marcus."
Marcus suddenly turned to me, dropping his pride completely. Right there, in front of the twelve most powerful investors in the city, he fell to his knees.
"Elena, please," he sobbed, reaching out to grab the hem of my trousers. "I confessed. I did what you asked. Just let me walk away. I'll sign the divorce papers. I'll give you everything. Just don't let him kill me."
The board members stared in absolute shock. Marcus Pierce, the arrogant, ruthless CEO, was weeping on his knees in front of his quiet wife, begging for his life.
"Don't touch me," I said quietly.
I took one step back, my gaze completely hollow.
At that moment, the heavy glass doors swung open for the final time.
My father walked into the boardroom.
The atmosphere in the room changed instantly. The older board members recognized him immediately. Richard Sterling literally stumbled backward, his back hitting the glass wall of the conference room.
"Silas Vance," Richard breathed, all the color draining from his face.
My father didn't acknowledge Richard. He didn't look at the board. He walked straight to the head of the table and stood beside me. He looked down at Marcus, who was still kneeling on the carpet, weeping uncontrollably.
"You're making a mess of the carpet, Marcus," my father said, his voice quiet, calm, and absolutely terrifying.
"Silas," Richard stammered, holding up a shaking hand. "We... the board had no idea. We didn't know Aegis Global was yours. We didn't know he was stealing."
"I know," my father said, not taking his eyes off Marcus. "If I thought you knew, Richard, none of you would have made it to this meeting today."
Richard swallowed hard, nodding rapidly.
"But you see, Richard," my father continued, finally looking up at the terrified executives. "Marcus didn't just steal my money. He put his hands on my daughter."
A collective gasp swept through the room. Several board members looked at me, their eyes dropping to the rigid, careful way I was standing to protect my bandaged back. The realization of what Marcus had been doing behind closed doors hit them.
The disgust on their faces was total. Any lingering loyalty Marcus might have had evaporated in a single second. He was a thief, an abuser, and a dead man walking.
"The funds have been recovered," my father announced to the room. "Pierce Logistics will survive this. But Marcus Pierce will not."
My father nodded to the two enforcers at the door.
One of them opened the door wider and whistled sharply down the hall.
A moment later, four federal agents in FBI windbreakers entered the boardroom. They weren't my father's men. They were real authorities. My father had kept his promise—a clean, legal destruction.
"Marcus Pierce," the lead agent said, pulling a pair of heavy steel handcuffs from his belt. "You're under arrest for corporate espionage, massive wire fraud, and embezzlement. Chloe Evans is already in custody downstairs."
Marcus didn't fight. He didn't even stand up. The agents had to haul him off the floor by his armpits. They locked the handcuffs securely around his wrists.
As they dragged him toward the door, Marcus turned his head, looking back at me one last time. His eyes were completely broken. He had lost his money, his company, his freedom, and his power, all in a single morning.
"Elena," he choked out.
"Goodbye, Marcus," I said.
The agents pulled him through the glass doors, the heavy magnetic locks clicking shut behind them.
The boardroom was dead silent. The executives stood frozen, terrified to even breathe while Silas Vance was in the room.
My father turned to me, reaching out and gently touching my uninjured shoulder.
"Are we done here?" he asked softly.
I looked at the empty space where Marcus had been kneeling. I felt the agonizing sting on my back, a physical reminder of the years I had spent making myself small, trying to hide from my own strength. I would carry the scars, but the fear was gone. I was finally free.
I looked at the terrified board of directors, then up at my father.
"Yes," I said, holding my head high. "We're done."