Chapter 2 — The First Domino Falls
Adrian laughed.
It was the confident laugh of a man who had never been told no.
He snatched the phone from my hand before I could say another word and pressed the call against his own ear.
"Mr. Whitmore?" he mocked. "Your daughter is having a difficult evening. Perhaps you'd like to wire her another fortune."
Silence.
Then a calm voice answered.
"Exactly twenty-three seconds."
Adrian frowned.
"What?"
"My team only needed twenty-three seconds after Clara spoke the code phrase."
The smile slowly disappeared from Adrian's face.
"What are you talking about?"
"My lawyers have already filed the emergency injunction."
A vibration buzzed inside Adrian's pocket.
Then another.
Then another.
He pulled out his phone.
His chief financial officer.
His general counsel.
His executive assistant.
Twenty-three missed calls appeared almost instantly.
The first message read:
Federal regulators have entered headquarters. All executive accounts temporarily frozen. Do NOT sign anything.
The second:
Board members are demanding an emergency meeting.
The third:
Someone leaked internal recordings. News helicopters are outside.
Vanessa's champagne glass slipped from her fingers and shattered across the marble floor.
Adrian looked back at me.
"What did you do?"
I slowly stood despite the pain.
"I didn't do anything."
"My father did exactly what he promised he'd do if you ever forced me to use those words."
Adrian's breathing became uneven.
"You planned this?"
"No."
May you like
"My father did."
"Years ago."
