Chapter 5 - The Heir Apparent
Mei-Ling let out a long breath she hadn't realized she was holding, her knees suddenly feeling weak. She grabbed the edge of the conference table to steady herself, looking over at Eleanor with wide eyes.
"He just admitted to financial embezzlement," Mei-Ling whispered. "Did you hear that? He practically confessed to draining the foundation funds."
"Marcus has always been arrogant, blinded by his own sense of entitlement," Eleanor said, walking over and placing a warm, trembling hand on Mei-Ling's shoulder. "He thinks the Vance fortune is his birthright simply because he survived our family dinners while you were growing up in obscurity."
"How do we stop him?" Mei-Ling asked, the reality of the situation finally crashing down upon her. "If he controls the board and the legal team, walking into a meeting downstairs isn't going to do anything except give him a chance to fire us both."
"We don't go down there as supplicants," Eleanor replied, her eyes flashing with steel. "We go down there with proof of your identity legally verified and registered with the corporate registry."
"Verified? How? That takes weeks, months!"
"It takes five minutes when you hold thirty-five percent of the voting shares and the original birth certificate signed by the chief medical officer of Portland General Hospital," Eleanor said, reaching into her leather handbag and pulling out a yellowed, sealed document pouch. "Your father anticipated this day. Before he passed, he placed your birth certificate and DNA confirmation in a secure safety deposit box that only opens when both my thumbprint and the jade pendant are presented together."
Mei-Ling stared at the pouch in awe. "You planned this all along."
"I hoped and prayed for it," Eleanor corrected gently. "Now, take off that uniform jacket."
Mei-Ling hesitated for only a second before unbuttoning the beige service jacket and letting it drop to the floor. Underneath, she wore a simple black turtleneck she had used to layer against the cold warehouse drafts. She reached into her pocket, pulled out the heavy jade pendant, and slipped the silver chain over her head. The cold stone settled against her chest, right over her heart, warming rapidly to her body heat.
"Let's go meet the board," Mei-Ling said, her voice dropping an octave into a tone of quiet command that sounded uncannily like Eleanor's.
As they walked out of the executive suite toward the private elevator, Mei-Ling's phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and saw an anonymous text message flashing on the screen.
May you like
If you step foot in that boardroom, your adoptive parents' bakery will burn down tonight.
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