Chapter 6 - The Evisceration
Preston was the first to recover. He barked a harsh, condescending laugh. "You? The little auditor? You think you can waltz in here and take my company? This is a joke. Security!"
"Security works for the building management, Preston," Sable said calmly, pulling a slim tablet from her briefcase. "And Vanguard Acquisitions purchased this building yesterday morning. You are currently trespassing on my property, but I’ll allow it for the duration of this meeting."
Preston’s face drained of color.
"Let's skip the posturing," Sable continued, projecting her tablet screen onto the massive monitor behind her. "Callaway Holdings is over leveraged by two hundred million dollars. Your offshore accounts in the Caymans—the ones you thought were so cleverly hidden—have been frozen by the SEC pending an investigation. An investigation triggered by an anonymous tip I filed three years ago."
She tapped the screen. A series of damning financial documents, emails, and wire transfers illuminated the room. The shadow ledgers.
"You're bankrupt, Preston. Legally, morally, and financially." Sable turned her chilling gaze to Weston. "And you, Weston, are merely a passenger on a sinking ship."
Weston couldn't look at the screen. He could only look at her. "Sable... please. I was wrong. I was so wrong. I've been living in hell."
"A hell of your own making," Sable replied smoothly.
"Camille lied to me," Weston pleaded, desperation breaking his facade in front of the lawyers. "Leo isn't my son. He's... he's his." Weston pointed a shaking finger at his father.
Preston froze. The room went dead silent. The Vanguard lawyers exchanged imperceptible smirks.
Sable didn't even blink. "I know."
Weston stared at her. "You knew?"
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"I'm an auditor, Weston. I noticed the timeline of Camille’s sudden promotion, the private jet logs matching Preston's 'golf trips,' and the expedited bonuses she received from Preston’s personal accounts. I knew before Mara was even born." Sable leaned forward, her eyes flashing with dangerous fire. "You threw away your actual daughter for your father's bastard, and you didn't even have the intelligence to run a DNA test until a toddler told you to."
Weston crumbled, burying his face in his hands, a pathetic, broken shell of the arrogant man who had laughed at her in the hospital.
