Chapter 11: The Missing Link
The hum of the HVAC system filled the quiet executive suite as Maeve pulled up an encrypted file on her terminal. The screen flickered, displaying a scanned document yellowed with age—an insurance claim form dated two weeks before the fatal crash, signed by an obscure corporate officer named Thomas Vance.
Arthur leaned forward, squinting at the name on the screen. "Thomas Vance... Marcus Vance's father. He was the chief legal counsel for the rival shipping conglomerate, Meridian Logistics, back in the nineties."
"Not just legal counsel," Maeve said, clicking to another document—a property deed transfer in the Cayman Islands. "Thomas Vance was the architect of the hostile takeover attempt that my father blocked six months before he died. When my father refused to sell his voting shares, Meridian lost millions on a failed futures contract. They had the motive, the means, and the local political connections to bury the investigation."
Arthur stared at the screen, his fists clenching on the armrests of his chair. A cold realization washed over him, sweeping away decades of false grief and misplaced trust. "And Marcus Vance was put on Victoria's legal team not by coincidence, but to protect the legacy of his father's crimes. They thought that by backing Victoria's marriage into the family, they would eventually gain controlling interest of Sterling Global without firing a single shot."
"They almost succeeded," Maeve said quietly. "If Victoria hadn't let her temper get the better of her in the ballroom last night—if she hadn't pushed me to the floor in front of three hundred witnesses—I might have had to spend another six months digging through their shell corporations."
"She always was her father's daughter," Arthur muttered, shaking his head in disgust. "Arrogant, impatient, and utterly blind to anyone outside their social circle."
May you like
Maeve stood up from the desk, walking over to the floor-to-ceiling window. The afternoon sun was casting long shadows across the concrete canyons of Manhattan. "The game isn't over yet, Arthur. Freezing Victoria's assets was just the opening move. Now that Marcus Vance and Meridian Logistics know we have the original insurance fraud files, they're going to strike back."
"Let them try," Arthur said, standing up to join her by the glass. His shoulders were squared, the fatigue of the previous night replaced by a fierce, renewed vitality. "We survived their attempt to destroy this family once before. This time, we write the ending."
