Chapter 114
Grace's POV
The conference room fell into stunned silence after my announcement. I watched Holden's face cycle through disbelief, rage, and something approaching panic. His hands trembled as he gripped the edge of the mahogany table.
"I won't let some outsider destroy the Harrison family legacy!" Holden's voice cracked as he slammed his fist down. "I'm calling for an emergency shareholder vote! This is corporate terrorism!"
How predictable.
I remained standing at the head of the table, my emerald suit a stark contrast to the sea of shocked faces around me. "Mr. Harrison, before you make any rash decisions, I should mention that I'm planning a comprehensive financial audit of the company's records for the past three years."
The color drained from his face.
"Including certain... questionable expense reports and unauthorized fund transfers." I let my gaze drift meaningfully between Holden and Richard. "Particularly those involving personal lifestyle subsidies for non-employees."
Richard's jaw clenched. He knew exactly what I meant – the money he'd been funneling to Laura, disguised as consulting fees and project expenses.
"You're bluffing," Holden sputtered, but his voice lacked conviction.
"Am I?" I smiled coldly. "Perhaps we should ask the board members if they'd like to review those transactions before supporting your emergency vote."
The executives exchanged nervous glances. Nobody wanted to be associated with financial impropriety, especially with an IPO hanging in the balance.
Richard stood abruptly, his chair scraping against the floor. When he spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper, thick with something that might have been desperation.
"Grace, please. Tell me what you want. I'll do anything to make this right."
Anything? Now you're willing to do anything?
I watched him struggle with the humiliation of begging in front of his colleagues and board members. The proud CEO who'd once dismissed my contributions was now pleading with me like a desperate man.
This is what you reduced me to for two years. How does it feel?
"The company's legal counsel can explain the voting procedures," I said, ignoring Richard's plea entirely. "As the majority shareholder, I have complete authority over executive appointments unless one hundred percent of remaining shareholders vote against me."
The lawyer cleared his throat nervously. "That's... that's correct. Mrs. Wilson holds absolute control unless there's unanimous opposition."
Holden's eyes lit up with desperate hope. "The Brennan brothers still hold five percent. They're old friends – they'll support us."
I watched the two elderly investors shift uncomfortably in their seats. They'd been weighing friendship against business sense, and I could see the scales tipping.
That's when I pulled out my tablet.
"Gentlemen, before you make your decision, perhaps you'd like to see this morning's news." I turned the screen toward them, displaying the business channel headline in bold letters:
STARPORT HARRISON GROUP CEO SCANDAL EXPOSED: Fake Marriage Deceives Female Employee for Six Years, Actually Has Wife and Child
The room erupted in gasps and whispered conversations. The article detailed Richard's hidden marriage to Laura, complete with photos and company information that left little doubt about the subjects' identities.
Holden's face turned purple with rage. "Grace Wilson! You vindictive woman! You've violated every principle of business ethics!"
"Business ethics? That's rich coming from you."
Richard stared at the screen in horror. "You promised! You said if I transferred the shares, you wouldn't..."
I laughed – actually laughed – and the sound seemed to chill everyone in the room.
"I never promised to forgive your deception and betrayal, Mr. Harrison. Where did you get the confidence to assume I'd let bygones be bygones?" I leaned forward slightly. "Did you really think that after deceiving me for two years, exploiting my emotions and labor, I'd still be the same soft-hearted woman I used to be?"
"Grace! You're using underhanded tactics!" Richard's voice cracked with fury.
"Underhanded?" I raised an eyebrow. "I'm simply ensuring the truth comes to light. Unlike some people in this room, I don't deal in lies and fabricated documents."
The shareholders frantically checked their phones, watching Harrison Group's stock price plummet in real-time. Their stakes were hemorrhaging value by the minute.
"Ladies and gentlemen," I addressed the room calmly, "Harrison Group's market reputation is collapsing as we speak. Your investment returns are evaporating along with it. The choice is yours."
The vote was swift and unanimous. Even Holden couldn't ignore the financial reality.
"Motion carried," the secretary announced. "Richard Harrison and Holden Harrison are hereby removed from their executive positions, effective immediately."
Holden began coughing violently, his face shifting from angry red to an alarming shade of blue-gray. He gripped the table's edge, struggling to remain upright.
Richard looked at me one final time, his eyes holding a mixture of rage and something that might have been grief.
"Did you have to be so ruthless? Does complete revenge really bring you inner peace?"
I met his gaze without flinching. "You made your choices, Richard. Now live with the consequences."
Holden managed to rasp out through his coughing fit, "She's more vicious and calculating than we ever imagined..."
"Security will escort you both from the premises," I announced, pressing the intercom button. "Your access cards have been deactivated."
Two security guards entered the conference room. Holden waved away their offered assistance, his pride intact despite his obvious physical distress. He shuffled toward the elevator, muttering under his breath about thirty years in business and never suffering such humiliation.
I turned back to my legal team, already discussing the company restructuring plans. I didn't watch them leave.
---
Richard's POV
The moment we stepped outside the Harrison Group building, Dad collapsed.
"Dad! Dad!" I caught him as he fell, his weight nearly taking us both down. "Someone call an ambulance!"
His face was gray, his breathing shallow and labored. Passersby stopped to stare as I knelt on the sidewalk, holding my father's head in my lap.
This is my fault. All of it.
The ambulance arrived within minutes, but it felt like hours. As the paramedics worked on him, loading him onto a stretcher, I kept thinking about Grace's cold, dismissive expression. The way she'd looked right through me as if I were nothing.
At the hospital, the cardiac surgeon emerged from the operating room with grim news.
"Acute myocardial infarction. We managed to restore blood flow, but there's significant damage to the heart muscle. He'll need extensive rehabilitation, and his prognosis..." The doctor shook his head. "It's too early to tell."
I slumped in the waiting room chair, my hands shaking. When had everything spiraled so far out of control? If I hadn't been so indecisive, if I hadn't given Grace so much ammunition against us...
My phone buzzed constantly – business partners, investors, reporters. I ignored them all.
Harrison Group is finished. Dad's in intensive care. And Grace...
Grace was probably celebrating her victory right now, finally free of the family that had used her.
I buried my face in my hands, feeling more alone than I'd ever felt in my life.
That's when I heard familiar footsteps running down the hospital corridor.
"Richard!" Laura burst through the doors, still clutching a shopping bag full of toys for Emma. When she saw me sitting there, disheveled and broken, her face went white with fear.