Derek passed the salt, grinning like he’d just won the lottery. He didn’t notice the small black device clipped under the lip of the table, the one my attorney Patricia had installed three weeks earlier — the same three weeks I’d been pretending to forget appointments, misplace my keys, and call Brittany by the wrong name. Bait. All of it.
Because two months ago, our IT director had flagged something strange: someone inside the company was forwarding contracts to that exact competitor. Someone with executive credentials. Someone using Derek’s laptop at 2 a.m. from Brittany’s parents’ lake house.
I dabbed my mouth and stood. “Before I sign anything, sweetheart, I want you to meet a few people.” The dining room doors opened. Patricia walked in first, briefcase in hand. Then Detective Alvarez from the Phoenix white-collar unit. Then Marcus, our CFO, holding a tablet already queued to the wire transfers — eighty-four thousand dollars Derek had been skimming through a shell vendor called Wexler Freight. A company registered to Brittany’s maiden name.
Derek’s wine glass hit the table. “Mom — wait — “
“The psychiatric eval was a nice touch,” I said. “Forging Dr. Hammond’s signature, though? That’s a felony in Arizona. So is wire fraud. So is attempting to coerce a corporate officer.” I slid his folder back across the table, on top of a thicker one of my own. “This is your severance package. Effective immediately. You’ll sign over your shares at the buy-back price your father wrote into the bylaws — one dollar, in cases of proven misconduct.”
Brittany started crying. Derek started shouting about loyalty, about family, about everything he was owed.
I walked him to the door myself. “You wanted me declared incompetent by Friday, Derek. It’s Friday.” I handed him his coat. “Competent enough?”
The competitor withdrew the offer by Monday. Marsh Logistics closed its biggest contract in company history by the end of the quarter. And every morning since, I’ve had my coffee at that same mahogany table — alone, and finally, blessedly, in peace.
I poured myself a cup of coffee, slow and deliberate, while Brielle’s friends filmed. ‘Sweetheart,’ I said, ‘before you redecorate, you should meet someone.’ The […]
I poured myself a cup of coffee, slow and deliberate, while Brielle’s friends filmed. ‘Sweetheart,’ I said, ‘before you redecorate, you should meet someone.’ The […]
I poured myself a cup of coffee, slow and deliberate, while Brielle’s friends filmed. ‘Sweetheart,’ I said, ‘before you redecorate, you should meet someone.’ The […]
