Chapter 9 - The Boardroom Ambush|
The emergency board meeting began at nine the following morning.
By then, the story had spread through every major financial publication in New York. Cameron Reed was accused of using company funds for a personal investigation, maintaining an inappropriate relationship with his assistant, and concealing a conflict of interest involving his late father's estate.
The accusations were carefully worded.
They didn't need to prove Cameron had committed a crime. They only needed to convince investors that he had become a liability.
I sat beside Daniel at the back of the boardroom while Cameron took his place at the head of the table.
Charles Whitmore sat opposite him.
He was in his early sixties, silver-haired and impeccably dressed, with the relaxed confidence of a man who had spent decades watching others surrender before he had to ask twice.
“Cameron,” Charles began, “nobody wants this to become ugly.”
“Then withdraw your motion.”
Charles smiled.
“You've been distracted. Your personal life is in the newspapers, and now you're accusing respected executives of crimes they supposedly committed decades ago.”
“I'm requesting an independent audit.”
“Based on a recording provided by my unstable daughter and an employee whose mother had a personal dispute with your father?”
I felt every eye turn toward me.
Cameron stood.
“Do not speak about Emma's mother as if she were a rumor.”
Charles raised his hands.
“I'm trying to protect the company.”
“No. You're trying to control it.”
The board reviewed the allegations, the financial records, and the surviving documents from the foundation. Daniel explained that the evidence justified an independent investigation, but he was careful not to claim that every accusation had been proven.
Several directors expressed concern about the company's reputation.
Others wanted to remove Cameron immediately.
Then Martin Hale took the floor.
He described Cameron as increasingly erratic, emotionally compromised, and unable to separate personal matters from corporate responsibility.
I watched Cameron's expression remain perfectly still.
He had known Martin for years. Perhaps longer than he had known anyone outside his family.
And now the man was trying to destroy him.
“Do you have evidence that I've misused company funds?” Cameron asked.
Martin hesitated.
“I have concerns.”
“Do you have evidence?”
“No.”
“Then your concerns can wait until the audit is complete.”
Charles leaned forward.
“The board must consider whether Cameron can continue leading this company while under such a cloud.”
A vote was called.
Cameron lost his temporary executive authority by one vote.
He didn't argue. He gathered his papers and left the room with his shoulders straight.
Outside, reporters crowded the corridor.
One shouted a question about me.
Another asked whether Cameron had used his position to pursue a relationship with his assistant.
Cameron ignored them all.
In the elevator, he finally exhaled.
“I'm sorry,” I said.
He turned toward me.
“You have nothing to apologize for.”
“You may lose everything because of this.”
“No.”
His voice softened.
“I may lose a company. That's not the same as losing everything.”
I wanted to ask what he meant, but the elevator doors opened.
Daniel was waiting in the lobby with his phone in his hand.
“Cameron, we have a problem.”
“What now?”
“Vanessa's car was found abandoned near the Hudson River.”
My stomach tightened.
“Was she inside?”
“No. But the police found blood on the passenger seat.”
Cameron went pale.
Daniel looked at me.
“And someone left a message on the windshield.”
May you like
He showed us a photograph.
STOP LOOKING FOR MARGARET'S LEDGER, OR VANESSA IS NEXT.
