Chapter 7
The hospital room door slammed shut as Adrian bolted out, running down the hall with none of the dignity he had entered with.
I let out a long, slow breath, my body collapsing back into the cushions as the adrenaline began to fade.
The physical pain returned with a vengeance, a dull, throbbing ache that reminded me of the long road of recovery ahead.
But mentally, I had never felt more powerful, my mind sharp and clear, detached from the emotional betrayal that should have broken me.
The door opened again, much more gently this time, and Arthur walked in, holding a fresh cup of black coffee.
"He looked like he was about to vomit in the elevator," Arthur noted with a grim smile, sitting down in the chair Adrian had ignored.
"The market is already reacting to the disclosure, Elena, Vale International stock is down seven percent in pre-market trading."
"Good," I said, closing my eyes for a moment to gather my strength. "Let it drop further, we will buy the remaining public shares at a discount."
"What about Cassandra?" Arthur asked, taking a sip of his coffee. "She's currently trying to authorize an emergency bonus payment to herself from the corporate marketing fund."
I opened my eyes, a cold spark of amusement lighting up my gaze.
"Let her try, the corporate treasury has already been locked by the compliance algorithm we installed through Nova Logistics' network integration."
"Every attempt she makes to transfer funds will be automatically flagged as embezzlement and sent directly to the forensic accounting task force."
"She is going to walk herself right into a federal indictment without us lifting a single finger."
"And the accident?" Arthur's tone turned serious, his brow furrowing as he looked at the metal pins holding my leg together.
"The police are still looking for the driver of the black SUV that hit your car at the intersection."
"The traffic cameras in that area were conveniently experiencing a technical glitch during those exact five minutes."
I turned my head to look out the rain-streaked window, my jaw tightening as the memory of the impact flashed through my mind.
"A technical glitch that requires administrative access to the city's traffic control network," I said softly, my voice dripping with ice.
"Access that can be purchased for the right price, or granted by someone with political connections in the city planning office."
"Adrian has been funding the re-election campaign for the deputy mayor for the past three years."
"Look into that connection, Arthur, find out exactly who authorized the maintenance schedule for those specific cameras on the day of my crash."
May you like
"If Adrian had a hand in trying to kill me to avoid a messy divorce, I won't just take his company."
"I will ensure he spends the rest of his miserable life inside a maximum-security prison cell."
