- 27 minutes ago
The Emerald Heiress
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00my face in front of his entire family his mistress was wearing my mother's necklace
00:05and all i said was does anyone have a pen the blackwell family dining room went silent
00:1132 people sat around the long mahogany table derek's parents his uncles cousins and of course
00:18vanessa hale the woman currently hanging on my husband's arm like a designer accessory
00:23she was wearing the emerald necklace my late mother had left me the one i had kept locked in
00:30my bedroom safe derek blackwell my husband of five years stood at the head of the table with his jaw
00:37clenched did you hear me aurelia i want a divorce sign the papers i stared at the document in front
00:45of me standard terms no alimony no asset division just a clean exit as if five years of marriage
00:52could be erased like a typo she's probably in shock vanessa whispered loud enough for everyone
00:57to hear poor thing where will she even go derek's mother constance sipped her wine without looking
01:04at me it's for the best dear you were never really one of us i had married into the blackwell
01:09family
01:09when i was 22 fresh out of college no family left no connections derek had seemed kind back then
01:16gentle the kind of man who opened doors and remembered your coffee order i didn't know he'd
01:22been sleeping with vanessa for three of our five years together i didn't know his mother had hand
01:27picked vanessa as his real match from the start and they certainly didn't know who i actually was
01:32well derek crossed his arms are you gonna sign or just sit there i picked up the pen the room
01:38collectively held its breath not out of sympathy but anticipation they wanted me gone i signed my name
01:45in smooth unhurried strokes then i set the pen down and looked up at derek i'll have my lawyers
01:51finalize this by morning but the necklace on your girlfriend's neck belongs to me i'd like it back
01:56vanessa's hand flew to the emerald derek gave this to me it's mine now derek gave you something that was
02:03never his to give derek stepped forward his voice dropping don't make a scene aurelia just leave with
02:10whatever dignity you have left dignity i almost laughed i stood straightened my dress and looked
02:18at every single face around that table not one of them would meet my eyes thank you for dinner
02:24constance the roast was dry as always i walked toward the door behind me i heard vanessa giggle
02:31finally i thought she'd never leave then derek's voice low but clear make sure she doesn't take anything
02:40from the house i want her out by midnight i paused at the threshold oh derek one more thing what
02:47you
02:47might want to check the financial news tomorrow morning it's going to be a very interesting day
02:51for blackwell industries the door clicked shut behind me and not a single person at that table
02:58understood what i meant
03:00yep
03:18the night air hit my face as i stepped outside the blackwell estate my phone buzzed 12 missed calls
03:27from the same number i called back mrs grayson the voice on the other end was clipped professional
03:34we've been trying to reach you the board is waiting for your final conferation it's mr ashford now i
03:41corrected and yes proceed with the acquisition understood the blackwell industries takeover will be
03:48finalized at market open shall i notify the press not yet let them enjoy their last peaceful night
03:55i ended the call and stood in the driveway staring at the fleet of luxury cars parked outside porsches
04:01range rovers a bentley my car was parked at the far end a simple black sedan nothing flashy what the
04:09blackwells didn't know was that the nobody orphan they had mocked for five years was the sole heir to
04:14ashford capital the largest private equity firm on the east coast my father had built it from nothing
04:20when my parents died in a plane crash during my senior year of high school i had inherited
04:25everything the lawyers the board the billions all held in trust until i turned 21 i had chosen to
04:33keep it hidden i wanted a normal life a real marriage someone who loved me for me not my net
04:39worth
04:39what a joke that turned out to be i had spent five years cooking dinner attending constance's insufferable
04:46garden parties and smiling while the blackwells treated me like the help all because i loved
04:51derek or rather i loved who i thought he was my phone buzzed again a text from an unknown number
05:00aurelia it's vanessa derek wanted me to remind you be out by midnight and leave the house keys on
05:07the counter thanks sweetheart i stared at the message then i typed back the house is in my name check
05:15the
05:15deed you have 48 hours to vacate i hit send silenced my phone and drove away tomorrow derek blackwell would
05:24wake up and discover that his wife his boring invisible powerless wife had just bought his
05:30family's entire company and she wasn't feeling merciful
05:52by 9 a.m the next morning it was all over the financial news ashford capital combelt's hostile
05:59takeover of blackwell industries sources confirm new majority shareholder is former blackwell family
06:06member my phone had been ringing non-stop since 6 a.m i let it ring i was sitting in
06:12the corner
06:13office on the 40th floor of the ashford capital building in manhattan sipping coffee and reviewing
06:18the final acquisition documents my assistant leo knocked twice before entering mrs ashford the
06:26blackwell family's attorney has called seven times derek blackwell himself has called 14 times he paused
06:32and constance blackweck is in the lobby she's demanding to see you i set my coffee down constance
06:38is here already she arrived 20 minutes ago security is holding her at reception i leaned back in my chair
06:46send her up leo hesitated are you sure absolutely
06:52i want to see her face five minutes later constance blackwell stepped into my office
06:58she looked immaculate as always chanel suit pearl earrings not a hair out of place but her eyes were
07:04wild darting around the massive corner office as if she had walked into a trap
07:09aurelia her voice was strained what is this some kind of sick joke good morning constance
07:17please please sit down she didn't sit you bought our company you the woman who couldn't even pick
07:24the right wine at dinner i always pick the right wine you just never had the palate to appreciate it
07:31this is her face reddened there's no way you have this kind of money who's backing you
07:37who put you up to this i slid a folder across the desk ashford capital founded by my father richard
07:44ashfield current net worth north of 12 billion sole heir me constance opened the folder as she read
07:53the color slowly drained from her face this can't be right it's been verified by three independent
08:00auditors and the sec would you like their numbers her hands trembled she closed the folder and looked up
08:06at me with an expression i had never seen on her face before fear what do you want aurelia i
08:12smiled
08:13i want my mother's necklace back and i want a formal public apology from your family and if we refuse
08:20i tilted my head then i'll liquidate blackwell industries by friday every asset every property
08:27every trust fund your family depends on i paused including derrick's conalton script the armrest of her
08:34chair you wouldn't constance you spent five years telling me i was nothing that i should be grateful your
08:41son even looked at me i leaned forward do i look like i'm bluffing the silence that followed was
08:49deafening finally constance stood her composure barely intact i'll speak with the family you have until 5
08:56pm today she turned to leave then stopped at the door without looking back she asked quietly did you ever
09:03actually love my son the question caught me off guard i paused then answered honestly more than he
09:09deserved the door closed behind her i echo hailed slowly my calm exterior cracking just slightly then
09:19leo's voice came through the intercom mrs ashfield there's one more visitor he doesn't have an appointment
09:25but he says it's urgent who is it derrick blackwell he's on his way up and ma'am leo's voice
09:32dropped
09:33he's not alone he brought vanessa and she's still wearing your mother's necklace
09:44the elevator doors opened and derrick walked in like he still owned the world his jaw was set his
09:50shoulders squared every inch of him radiating the arrogance i had once mistaken for confidence
09:55vanessa trailed behind him in a red dress that probably cost more than most people's rent
10:00my mother's emerald glittering against her collarbone like a stolen crown they both stopped
10:05cold when they saw the name on my office door aurelia ashford ceo ashford capital derrick's mask
10:12tin he recovered shoving his hands into his pockets with forced casualness
10:19so it's true his voice was flat you've been hiding this the entire time i didn't stand didn't
10:25offer them a seat hiding implies i owed you the truth i didn't vanessa clutched derrick's arm her
10:33eyes sweeping the corner office the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking manhattan the original basquiat
10:38on the wall the quiet unmistakable scent of real power for the first time she looked unsure of herself
10:44derrick pulled out a chair without being invited and sat across from me let's cut the theatrics aurelia
10:50you're angry i get it but buying my family's company that's not justice that's revenge and throwing
10:58divorce papers at my face in front of your entire family while your mistress wore my dead mother's
11:04jewelry what was that rowans he flinched good here's what's going to happen derrick i opened a
11:11leather portfolio on my desk i now hold 62 of blackwell industries that makes me the majority
11:17shareholder as of this morning i've frozen all executive accounts pending a full financial audit
11:24derrick's face went white you froze our accounts your company's accounts they're my company's accounts now
11:31vanessa stepped forward you can't do this derrick's family built that company over three generations
11:40and your boyfriend nearly bankrupted it in two years i pulled out a financial report
11:45and placed it on the desk blackwell industries has been hemorrhaging money since derrick took
11:50over as coo exposed derivatives positions honorized loans a 12 million dollar marketing expense that
11:56traces directly to a villa in the south of france i looked at vanessa your villa i believe vanessa's
12:02mouth opened then closed derrick shot to his feet that's confidential financial data
12:10how did you i own the company derrick nothing is confidential from me the room went very still
12:18derrick stared at me as if seeing me for the first time not the quiet wife who folded his laundry
12:23and
12:24tolerated his mother's insults not the woman he had so easily discarded his voice was hoarse what do you
12:30want i already told your mother the necklace a public apology and i want vanessa out of every
12:37property connected to blackwell industries including the villa vanessa let out a sharp laugh you're
12:44delusional derrick tell her shut up vanessa she recorded as if she'd been slapped derrick's hands were
12:52shaking he pressed them flat against the desk leaning forward and if i agree to all of that
12:59you'll return control of the company i studied him for a long moment no his face crumbled the company
13:07stays with me consider it the alimony you didn't think i deserved i closed the portfolio you have
13:13until five o'clock after that i begin liquidation proceedings aurelia derrick looked like a man
13:20watching his house five years doesn't that mean anything to you i held his gaze without blinking it
13:27meant everything to me derrick that's why this hurts you so much because you're only now realizing it
13:35meant nothing to you he had no response i pressed the intercom leo please escort mr blackwell and his
13:44guest to the elevator derrick said slowly mechanically he turned our door this isn't over i smiled for you
13:51it was over the moment you handed me that pen the door closed i sat in silence for exactly 10
13:57seconds
13:58then leo's voice ashford i have an update derrick's car is still in the parking garage but vanessa just
14:04got into a separate vehicle a black mercedes it's registered to someone named roman corsetti my hand
14:11froze on the desk roman corsetti the one name in the city i had spent five years avoiding
14:18ashford are you all right i let out a slow breath leo pull everything we have on corsetti holdings
14:24every subsidiary every board member every transaction in the last six months may i ask why because roman
14:30corsetti was the only man alive who knew exactly who i was before i became aurelia ashford before the
14:36inheritance before the walls i had built around myself and if vanessa was connected to him this
14:43wasn't just a messy divorce anymore just do it and leo yes cancel my afternoon something tells me it's
14:51about to get a lot more complicated
14:57by noon leo had assembled a full dossier on corsetti holdings i spread the documents across my desk
15:03scanning each page with the precision of someone defusing a bomb roman corsetti age 34 inherited his
15:10father's mid-tier real estate empire at 26 and tripled its value in under five years on paper he was
15:17a
15:17legitimate businessman commercial developments luxury hotels a philanthropic foundation but i knew better
15:24the corsetti family had deep roots in old money networks that didn't show up on any balance sheet
15:30the kind of connections that could make a corporation vanish overnight or bury a scandal so deep it would
15:36never surface roman and i had history not the kind i ever talked about we had met seven years ago
15:41before
15:42my parents died before i inherited ashford capital before i made the catastrophic decision to marry
15:47derek blackwell i was 20 studying abroad in london and roman was the brooding italian american who sat in
15:53the back of my economics lecture and never took notes but aced every exam we had been inseparable for one
15:58semester then my parents plane went down and i disappeared from everyone's life including his
16:03i never explained never said goodbye just vanished and now vasahale my ex-husband's mistress was climbing
16:10into his car leo i didn't look up from the file what's vanessa's connection to corsetti leo pulled up a
16:17tablet according to social media vanessa's work briefly as an event coordinator for corsetti holdings about
16:23two years ago there are photos of her at several corsetti hosted gallus there is also a rumor unconfirmed
16:30that she and roman were romantically involved before she started seeing derek my stomach tightened so
16:36vanessa had gone from roman's orbit to derek's bed and now she was running back the question was why
16:42before i could dig deeper my desk phone rang the caller id read front desk security ems ashford there's
16:51a delivery for you no sender name the security team has already screened it a box send it up
16:59two minutes later leo placed a matte black box on my desk no card no label just a small gold
17:05clasp i
17:06opened it inside resting on black velvet was a single white chess piece a queen my blood went cold
17:12only one person had ever called me that a private joke from a london cafe over cheap espresso and
17:18and a borrowed chess set you always play queen first roman had said most people protect their queen
17:25you use yours as a weapon that's because most people don't understand power
17:29he had laughed a low warm sound i hadn't heard in seven years i closed the box leo where did
17:38this
17:38come from the courier service says it was ordered this morning paid in cash no traceable origin
17:45i placed the chess piece on my desk saying he knew about the blackwell takeover and he was letting me
17:51know in his own insufferably cryptic way that he was watching my phone buzzed a text from an unknown
17:57number kello queen it has been a while guy typed back without hesitation what do you want roman
18:02three dots appeared disappeared appeared again then dinner tonight tonight 8 pm you know the place
18:09guy didn't know the place a small italian restaurant on the lower east side that we used to frequent in
18:15the summers when he visited new york the kind of place with checkered tablecloths and a 70 year old
18:20owner who made pasta by hand every instinct told me to ignore the message but roman corsetti didn't reach
18:26out without reason if nessa was connected to him i needed to know how deep it went and whether the
18:31blackwell mess was bigger than a cheating husband in a stolen necklace i picked up the chess piece
18:37turning it slowly between my fingers then i typed so i'll be there at eight don't be late his response
18:42was immediate guy never late you are the one who disappeared guy set the phone down this was no longer
18:49just about derrick the restaurant hadn't changed same bed checkered tablecloths same dim lighting same
19:01scent of garlic and fresh basil heavy in the air even the old owner sal was still there shuffling between
19:07tables with a dish towel over his shoulder i arrived at 7 55 roman was already seated in the back
19:13corner
19:13our old table he looked up the moment i walked in as if he had sensed me before he saw
19:18me seven years had
19:19sharpened his features the boyish edges were gone replaced by a jaw that could cut glass and eyes so
19:24dark they swallowed the candlelight his suit was charcoal no top relaxed controlled dangerous you're
19:31early he said you said don't be late i sat across from him i'm never late either a ghost of
19:36a smile
19:37you've changed everyone changes his gaze moved over my face not like this as if cataloging every difference
19:44the aurelia i knew wouldn't have bought a company just to punish a man the aurelia you knew also
19:50wouldn't have married one who deserved punishing he leaned back studying me fair point sal appeared with
19:55a bottle of good wine the same barola we used to order he poured two glasses without asking patted roman
20:02on the shoulder and disappeared i didn't touch my glass let's skip the nostalgia why am i here
20:11because you want to know why vanessa hale got into my car this morning that was new the roman i
20:17remembered preferred to circle a topic like a hawk before diving so you know i'm watching i know
20:23everything aurelia i've known where you were for the past five years i knew when you married blackwell
20:30i knew when he started cheating his voice didn't change but something flickered behind his eyes
20:36i knew when you filed the acquisition paperwork three months ago he months he had known for three
20:42months if you knew all of that i said carefully then why didn't you interfere he lifted his glass
20:50because you didn't want me to you made that very clear when you vanished without a word seven years ago
20:57zation landed like a blade between my ribs i held his gaze i had my reasons he drank set the
21:03glass down
21:05i'm sure you did but that's not why we're here tonight then why vanessa came to me this afternoon
21:12with a proposal she wants me to help derek blackwell challenge the takeover she claims the acquisition was
21:17done using insider information and that she has documents to prove it my jaw tightened that's a lie
21:24i know it's a lie the question is who gave her the idea vanessa isn't smart enough to fabricate a
21:31legal
21:31strategy on her own someone is coaching her i thought for a moment derek's lawyers no i had my people
21:40check the blackwell legal team is scrambling they didn't see this coming any more than derek did roman
21:48leaned forward lowering his voice there's a third party involved aurelia someone who wants blackwell
21:55industries and they're using vanessa as a pawn to destabilize your position a chill crawled up my spine
22:04roman reached into his jacket and placed a single photograph on the table i looked down it was a
22:10photo of vanessa at a private dinner seated next to a silver-haired man in his 60s i recognized him
22:16instantly victor hale vanessa's father and one of the most ruthless corporate raiders on wall street
22:22vanessa isn't just derek's mistress roman said she was planted her father has been eyeing blackwell
22:28industries for over a year the affair the divorce the chaos it was all engineered to weaken the
22:35company's value before a hostile bid i stared at the photograph everything i thought i understood about
22:41the last five years shifted rearranged collapsed and rebuilt itself into something far uglier derek
22:47doesn't know i whispered derek is an idiot roman said flatly but no he doesn't know roman watched me
22:55in silence then spoke again victor hale's bid is set to go through in 72 hours if he succeeds he
23:02won't
23:02just take blackwell industries he'll use it as leverage to go after ashford capital's commercial real estate
23:07portfolio my portfolio my father's legacy i set the glass down hard enough to rattle the silverware
23:14then i have 72 hours to destroy him roman's lips curved not quite a smile but close you need help
23:21i don't need anyone's help you don't need it he agreed but you'd be a fool to refuse it we
23:27stared at
23:28each other across the table the candlelight flickering between us seven years of silence seven years of
23:34questions neither of us had asked and now sitting across from the only man who had ever truly known
23:40me i realized something terrifying i did it and that was the most dangerous thing of all
23:48i didn't sleep that night by 2 a.m i was in ashford capitol's war room a windowless conference
23:54space on the 41st floor that most employees didn't even know existed screens lined every wall financial
24:01data streamed in real time leo had assembled a small trusted team our chief legal counsel margaret
24:07wu head of acquisitions james alcott and priya sharma our forensic accountant who could trace a dollar
24:12through 17 shell companies i laid out everything roman had told me when i finished the room was silent
24:18margaret spoke first if victor hale files a competing acquisition claim within 72 hours we'll be locked in a
24:26legal battle that could take months during that time a judge could freeze our controlling shares
24:31james added freeze our shares which is exactly what he wants tank the stock price then swoop in with a
24:38lowball offer priya pulled up a screen i've already started tracing vanessa's hale's financial records
24:43she has accounts in three offshore jurisdictions sem the caymans lakachenstein and singapore
24:49all open within the last 18 months i noted right around the time she started dating derrick exactly
24:56and look at this zoomed in on a series of wire transfers monthly payments from a trust fund
25:02registered to hale industries routed through two intermediary accounts landing in vanessa's personal
25:09account 50 000 a month margaret leaned forward she was being paid to seduce derrick blackwell the words
25:16hung in the air like smoke i thought about derrick stupid vain unfaithful derrick and felt unexpected
25:23pang of something not sympathy exactly more like the grim recognition that we have both been played
25:28there's more priya switched screens six weeks ago vanessa's made a large withdrawal in two hundred
25:34thousand dollars ian and transferred it to a legal firm kessler and briggs james whistled that's victor
25:41hale's personal attack dog firm they specialize in hostile takeover litigation so the legal challenge
25:49is already in motion i said priya's voice was tight kessler briggs filed a sealed motion yesterday
25:56afternoon i couldn't access the contents but the case number is linked to blackwell industries 72 hours
26:03had been optimistic victor hale was already ahead of us i pressed my palms flat against the table
26:08options margaret didn't hesitate we need to prove that vanessa was acting as an agent of hale
26:15industries when she infiltrated the blackwell family if we can demonstrate that victor
26:21austrated the affair to manipulate blackwell industries stock price that's securities fraud
26:26it would invalidate any competing bid can we prove it with these financial records it's a strong start
26:33but we need more we need testimony from someone inside hail industries who can confirm victor's
26:40involvement a whistle or i murmured or someone with leverage james suggested someone who owes us a
26:46favor sam or who has their own reason to want victor hale taken down my phone buzzed a text from
26:53roman
26:54asterisk breakfast tomorrow i have something you need to see asterisk i stared at the message then looked at
26:59my team keep digging i want every transaction every communication every connection between victor
27:05hale and the blackwell family mapped out by morning as they disperse ems ashford can i ask you something
27:12personal go ahead roman corsetti can you trust him it was the right question the smart question i don't
27:19know i admit it but right now he's the only person outside this room who knows what victor hale is
27:26planning and he came to me before i came to him leo nodded slowly just be careful corsetti has his
27:33own
27:33interests everyone does i thought about the white chest piece still sitting on my desk i know leo
27:40believe me i know
27:45wellman was waiting at the same restaurant same table same burolo already poured you look like you
27:51haven't slept he said as i sat down i haven't talk he slid a manila envelope across the table victor
27:57hale held a private meeting last night with three blackwell industries board members he's offering
28:01them personal buyouts in exchange for voting against your acquisition at the next shareholder meeting
28:05i opened the envelope inside were photographs time stamped high resolution showing victor shaking
28:11hands with board members i recognized how did you get these i have people everywhere aurelia
28:18you know that i studied the photos if these three vote against me combined with the shares hale is
28:25accumulating through shell companies he'll have enough to force a revote on the acquisition
28:30and with a sympathetic judge he could get an injunction within days i close the envelope then
28:36i need to get to these board members before he does jerald foss is a lost cause he's been on
28:41hale's
28:41payroll for years i have the records to prove it diana chu is wavering she's loyal to the blackwell
28:46name but she's terrified of victor and martin kemp roman passed martin is the key he holds the swing
28:52vote and he's old school he won't be bought but he can be convinced if someone he respects makes the
28:57case who does he respect well men held my gaze your father martin and richard ashford were close friends
29:05he was at your parents funeral a sharp ache bloomed in my chest i pushed it down i'll meet with
29:11martin
29:11today roman reached into his jacket and produced i thought you might say that his private number
29:18he's expecting a call from me sam but hearing from you will carry more weight i took the card
29:24our fingers brushed neither of us pulled away immediately why are you helping me roman the
29:29question i've been avoiding what's in this for you he was quiet for a long moment victor hale destroyed a
29:36friend of mine a man named elliot graves ran a development firm in boston planted someone close
29:43to him engineered a scandal gutted his company and bought the remains for pennies roman's voice
29:47was steady but i could hear the steel beneath it elliot killed himself six months later the restaurant
29:53noise faded to a murmur i've been waiting for the right moment to bring victor down roman continued when
29:59i saw what he was doing to blackwell industries and realized you were the one standing in his way
30:03i knew the moment had arrived so i'm a means to an end you're the only person i've ever met
30:09who's
30:09smart enough ruthless enough and well resourced enough to beat him he leaned forward and you
30:15happened to be the one person i couldn't bring myself to forget the words landed somewhere deep
30:19in a place i'd spent seven years trying to wall off i stood tugging the ombar my arm i'll call
30:25martin
30:25this afternoon aurelia i stopped when this is over sim and it will end one way or another you and
30:33i have
30:34a conversation that's seven years overdue i didn't turn around one war at a time roman but as i walked
30:41out into the morning light my heart was beating fast for it martin camp lived in a brown stone on
30:51the upper
30:51west side the kind with original crown molding and a library that smelled like pipe tobacco and old
30:56leather he opened the door himself no butler no assistant just a 70 year old man in a cardigan
31:03reading glasses perched on his nose he said my name like he was tasting something bittersweet
31:09aurelia ashford you look just like your mother something cracked inside me i held it together mr kemp
31:16thank you for seeing me he led me to his study gestured to a worn armchair and sat across from
31:22me
31:22a framed photograph on his desk showed him shaking hands with my father at some long ego charity gala
31:29he said without preamble i watched you take over blackwell industries bold move richard would
31:38been proud i'm not sure about that i am he studied me over his glasses your father never did anything
31:46halfway neither it seems do you i pulled out the photographs roman had given me and placed them
31:53on the desk victor hale is coming for my acquisition he's already turned gerald foss and he's working on
32:00diana chu you're the swing vote mr kemp martin looked at the photos his expression didn't change but
32:08his fingers tightened around his teacup victor hale is a snake he said simply i've known that for 30
32:15years then you know what he'll do if he gets control of blackwell industries he'll strip it sell off the
32:22assets and use the proceeds to launch a broader attack including against ashford capital martin set
32:28down his tea you're asking me to vote in your favor at the shareholder meeting i'm asking you to do
32:34what's
32:35right he was quiet for a long time the clock on the wall ticked steadily there's something you should
32:41know he said at last victor came to see me two days ago he didn't offer me money he offered
32:51me something
32:52far more personal my pulse quickened what martin reached into a drawer and pulled out a document
32:59he placed it on the desk between us it was a medical report his name was at the top the
33:05diagnosis
33:06line read ever staged the third pancreatic cancer martin said his voice steady victor somehow obtained my
33:14medical records he told me he has connections to an experimental treatment program in switzerland
33:21one that isn't available through normal channels he's using your illness as leverage my blood ran cold
33:28he's offering me extra time with my grandchildren in exchange for my vote martin smiled sadly it's the
33:59the kind that almost works i sat forward mr chem i can get you into that program ashford capital has
34:06a biomedical investment division we fund three of the top oncology research centers in europe
34:12i can make a call today his eyes sharpened don't offer me something just to buy my vote aurelia
34:19that would make you no different from victor i held his gaze
34:23i'm not buying your vote i'm telling you that you have options victor doesn't want you to know
34:28about your vote is yours whatever you decide i'll make that call regardless martin stared at me for a
34:36long moment then he leaned back and let out a breath that seemed to carry the weight of decades your
34:43father
34:43once told me that the measure of a person isn't what they do when they have power it's what they
34:50refuse
34:50to do he picked up the phone on his desk and dialed diana it's martin we need to talk about
35:01the shareholder
35:01meeting i sat in silence listening as the tide began to turn
35:10the next 48 hours were a controlled demolition martin kemp called diana chu and whatever he said
35:16convinced her to hold her vote with diana locked down victor's path to a majority collapsed unless
35:22he could find another way in he found one at 3 pm on the second day kessler and briggs filed
35:28an
35:28emergency injunction claiming that my acquisition of blackwell industries had been conducted using
35:32material non-public information insider trading the accusation was absurd every piece of data i'd used
35:39was publicly available but the filing triggered an automatic sec view and until the review was complete
35:44my shares would be frozen victor hale didn't need to win the case the judge granted a temporary
35:50restraining order your voting rights are suspended pending investigation how long could be weeks could
35:57be months victor's lawyers are going to drag this out as long as possible i turned to priya the
36:03offshore accounts vanessa's payments tell me you have everything documented stamus did verified and
36:12cross-referenced priya confirmed but it's not enough for the sec we need direct evidence something on at
36:19buick's my phone buzzed we need to meet now not the restaurant my office
36:2730 minutes later i was in the corsetti holding on park avenue roman's office was sparse dark wood
36:33minimal furniture a wall of windows overlooking the city he was standing when i walked in his
36:39expression grin vented victor filed the injunction i know but that's not why i called you here he turned a
36:47laptop screen toward me one of my people intercepted this an hour it was an audio recording he pressed
36:52play victor hale's voice filled the room crisp and unmistakable the sec filing is just a delay tactic
36:59once ashford shares are frozen we move to phase two i want blackwell industry stock below twelve
37:03dollars by end a week use the singapore account to short the position and make sure vanessa keeps
37:08derrick occupied a second voice male unfamiliar responded what about corsetti he's been seen with
37:16the ashford woman victor laughed roman corsetti is a sentimental fool he thinks he's protecting her
37:20by the time he realizes what's actually happening it'll be too late recording ended i looked at roman
37:25what does he mean what's actually happening that's what concerns me roman's jaw tightened victor isn't just
37:32going after blackwell industries it's all a smoke screen for what he pulled up a document on his
37:39screen my forensic team found this a subsidiary called orion ventures its sole purpose is to
37:45acquire distressed commercial real estate assets i scanned the filing then i saw it a list of target
37:51properties 23 buildings across manhattan boston and dc every single one was owned by ashford capital
37:58he's not trying to take blackwell industries he's trying to bankrupt me blackwell is just the
38:04weapon roman nodded if he crashes blackwell stock while your shares are frozen it triggers a margin
38:09call on ashford capital's leverage positions you'd be forced to sell assets at firevale price and orion
38:15ventures would be waiting to buy every building your father ever owned i stood at the window staring out
38:21at the city my father had helped build five years ago i had walked away from my name my fortune
38:27my legacy
38:28all for a man he never deserved me i had walked that dream was dead but my father's legacy wouldn't
38:35die with it i turned back to roman the recording can it hold up in court it was obtained through
38:41surveillance not a wiretap warrant admissibility is questionable out my phone then we don't take it
38:48to court we take it to the sec directly combined with priya's financial trail it's enough to trigger a
38:54full investigation into hail industries victor won't be able to execute his plan if his own assets are
38:59frozen you want to use his own tactic against him he taught me a valuable lesson you don't need to
39:06win
39:06the war you just need to make sure your enemy can't fight for the first time roman smiled a real
39:12smile
39:12not the guarded half curve i'd seen before there she is he murmured the queen i remember ignored the
39:18way my pulse stuttered call your lawyer we filed tomorrow morning he picked up his phone already
39:24done one more thing what derek called me an hour ago he knows about victor's plan he wants to meet
39:33me derek called you he's desperate vanessa cleaned out his personal accounts this morning and disappeared
39:39he's broke humiliated and finally starting to understand what happened to him i thought about
39:44the man who had thrown divorce papers at my face three days ago and will you tell him i'll think
39:49about it i picked up my coat that depends on whether he's ready to do exactly what i tell him
39:59derek blackwell showed up at ashford capital the next morning looking like a man who hadn't slept
40:04showered or eaten in days his suit was wrinkled his eyes were bloodshot the arrogant tilt of his chin was
40:12gone replaced by something i had never once seen on his face humility leo escorted him to my office
40:19i didn't offer him a seat this time either but he didn't try to take one he just stood in
40:25front of
40:25my desk hands at his sides aurelia his voice cracked on my name i know i don't deserve to be
40:32here you're
40:33right you don't sit down he sat
40:42vanessa's gone he said she emptied my accounts personal savings the joint account even the emergency
40:48fund my mother set up three hundred thousand dollars gone overnight i know his head snapped up
40:55you know i know everything derek i've known about vanessa's real identity for two days now
41:03i opened a folder and placed it in front of him vanessa haleo daughter of victor hale ceo of hale
41:10industries she was planted in your life to destabilize blackwell industries so her father could execute a
41:17hostile takeover derek read the documents with each page the color drained further from his face
41:23the affair the divorce it was all injured yes he looked up at me and for the first time in
41:31five
41:31years i saw the man i had once married not the arrogant heir not the unfaithful husband just a lost
41:38broken person who had been used why are you showing me this because i need your help
41:45he blinked my help after everything i did to you victor hale filed an ssc complaint to freeze my
41:53shares if i can't vote at the shareholder meeting he wins but there's one thing he didn't account for
42:01what you you still hold eight percent of blackwell industries through your personal trust
42:06it's the one asset vanessa couldn't touch because it's locked in a generational trust with a morality
42:11clause derek stared you want me to vote with you i want you to stand up in front of the
42:17board tell
42:18them exactly what happened and vote to ratify my acquisition your testimony combined with the
42:23evidence my team has assembled will be enough to lift the injunction and destroy victor's case and if
42:29i do this victor will come after me victor is going to come after you regardless derek
42:35he used you he doesn't need you anymore the only question is whether you go down as his puppet or
42:43stand up as someone who fought back the silence stretched then derek did something i never expected
42:51he laughed a hollow bitter sound you know what's funny my mother always said you weren't good enough
42:59for me that you had no ambition no vision she said vanessa was better he met my eyes and now
43:07now i'm
43:08sitting in your office in your building asking for your help and you're the only person in the world
43:13willing to give it to me i didn't feel satisfaction i didn't feel vindication i just felt tired the
43:20shareholder meeting is in 36 hours i said my legal team will prepare your statement you'll need to review
43:26it tonight he stood i'll do it aurelia what i'm sorry not because i need something from you
43:38because i should have said it a long time ago i held his gaze for a moment then nodded once
43:44and now
43:45he left leo appeared in the doorway do you believe him it doesn't matter if i believe him it matters
43:53if
43:53the board does my phone buzzed roman victor knows about the sec filing he is accelerating the
44:01shareholder meeting may be moved up i typed back how soon tomorrow 9am 36 hours had just become 12.
44:14i didn't panic panic was a luxury i couldn't afford by midnight my war room was fully operational
44:22margaret had derek's testimony drafted priya had the financial evidence packaged into a presentation
44:27that even a first-year law student could follow james had contacted every friendly shareholder
44:33to confirm their attendance roman arrived at 1am with two cups of coffee and a flash drive
44:39what's on it i asked victor's communications with gerald foss going back 18 months emails text recorded
44:46phone calls my people attained them through foss's former assistant she quit last month and was more
44:50than happy to cooperate i plugged in the drive the contents were devastating victor had been
44:55coordinating with foss to inflate and then crash blackwell industries stock timing the manipulation to
45:01coincide with keyboard decisions this is securities fraud margaret said reading over my shoulder clear
45:08documented undeniable securities fraud it's enough to get foss removed from the board and potentially
45:15arrested priya added which means his vote is invalidated i turned to roman if foss's vote is
45:23thrown out and derek votes with us you have a super majority the acquisition is locked victor can't
45:30touch it for the first time in days i felt something loosen in my chest but roman's expression remained
45:37guarded there's a complication of course there was victor filed a motion to have the meeting held at a
45:43neutral location the hail industries conference center in midtown the judge approved it an hour ago
45:49james swore under his breath he wants us on his turf it's a power play roman said he wants to
45:56intimidate the board members surround them with his people his security his atmosphere i stood pacing
46:03the length of the room then we show up with something he doesn't expect which is i looked
46:09at roman everything we walk in with the financial evidence derrick's testimony foss's communications
46:15and the audio recording we don't hold anything back we put it all on the table and let the board
46:20decide
46:21the recording may not be admissible in court this isn't court it's a shareholder meeting the rules
46:28of evidence don't apply we just need the board to hear victor hale in his own words admitting to mark
46:33manipulation roman considered this then he nodded slowly it's aggressive victor hale planted a woman
46:40in my husband's bed to steal my father's legacy aggressive is the least of what i'm going to be
46:46the room was quiet then margaret smiled i'll have everything ready by 7 a.m prea james i want backup
46:56copies of every document on encrypted drives if anything happens to the originals we don't lose a
47:01thing and me roman asked i met his eyes you'll be there front row i want victor to see you
47:09and know
47:09exactly whose side you're on something passed between us unspoken electric and entirely too
47:16complicated for a night like this front row it is he said quietly everyone filed out roman lingered
47:27aurelia roman if you're about to give me a motivational speech i was gonna say you have coffee
47:32on your sleeve i looked down he was right for the first time in days i laughed he smiled that
47:40rare
47:40real smile and something in the room shifted the air felt lighter warmer get some sleep he said tomorrow
47:50you end this tomorrow we end this he held my gaze for one heartbeat two three then he left and
47:59i sat alone
47:59in the war room surrounded by evidence of betrayal and greed and allowed myself just for a moment to
48:06feel something other than fury hope the hail industries conference center was a monument to
48:15intimidation marble floors 40-foot ceilings security personnel stationed at effort entrance victor hail
48:22had designed this building to make everyone who entered feel small i walked through the front
48:27doors at 8 45 a.m with margaret leo and pria flanking me disharik arrived separately escorted by two of
48:34my
48:34security personnel roman was already inside seated in the front row of the observation gallery exactly as
48:42promised he wore a black suit and an expression of perfect calm victor hail sat at the head of the
48:48conference table like a king on his throne silver-haired sharp-eyed impeccably dressed he looked at me the
48:55way a cat looks at a mouse m's ashford his voice was smooth practice how kind of you to join
49:01us mr hale
49:03lovely building compensating for something a few board members coughed to hide their reactions the
49:09meeting was called to order the chair a neutral attorney appointed by the court outlined the agenda
49:15first item ratification of the ashford capital acquisition of blackwell industries victor's attorney
49:22a razor-thin man from kessler and briggs stood immediately before we proceed we'd like to enter
49:29into the record our formal objection to this acquisition on the grounds of if i may i interrupted
49:35standing before mr hale's attorney launches into what i'm sure is a very expensive objection i'd like to
49:41present some materials to the board the chair looked between us m's ashford this is somewhat irregular
49:48so is using your daughter as a honeypot to destroy a publicly traded company but here we are the room
49:55went dead silent victor's smile didn't waver but his eyes went flat cold like a shark's i nodded to priya
50:03who distributed folders to every board member inside you'll find documentation of a coordinated scheme
50:09by victor hale to manipulate the stock price of blackwell industries the scheme involved planting his
50:15daughter vanessa hale as an agent to infiltrate the blackwell family destabilize the company's
50:21leadership and create conditions for a hostile takeover i walked the board through every piece
50:27of evidence the offshore accounts the monthly payments the connection to kessler and briggs
50:33the orion ventures subsidiary the target list of ashford capital properties the board members faces
50:40shifted from skepticism to shock to barely concealed outrage then i played the audio recording victor's
50:46own voice filled the conference room every word every instruction every casual reference to treating
50:53people's lives like chess pieces when it ended the silence was suffocating victor hale stood slowly
51:00his composure was cracking not visibly not to anyone who didn't know what to look for but i saw the
51:06micro tremor in his right hand the slight flare of his nostrils this this recording was obtained illegally
51:14he said it's inadmissible simple this isn't a courtroom mr hale the chair's voice was firm and the financial
51:22documents corroborating the recording are more than sufficient i turned to derrick mr blackwell derrick
51:31stood he was pale but steady he looked at the board the people who had watched him grow up who
51:37had sat at
51:37his family's dinner table who had trusted his father everything miss ashford has presented is true he said
51:46i was manipulated by vanessa hale at her father's direction i take full responsibility for my failure to
51:54see it and i am formally casting my eight percent share in support of ashford capital's acquisition
52:01gerald foss shot to his feet this is absurd you can't just mr foss i turned to him with a
52:09calm smile
52:10would you like me to share your communications with victor hale
52:14as well because i have 18 months of emails that suggest you've been acting as his inside man
52:21foss's mouth opened he sat down without another word the chair called for a vote one by one the
52:28board members voted martin kemp in favor deanna chu in favor derrick blackwell in favor when the final
52:36count was read the acquisition was ratified by a super majority victor hale sat motionless his empire
52:44his scheme his carefully constructed house of cards had collapsed in under an hour i gathered my documents
52:51buttoned my jacket and paused beside his chair on my way out mr hale a piece of advice from one
52:58ceo to
52:59another he didn't look at me never underestimate a woman you tried to rob we don't just fight back
53:04i leaned in close enough to whisper we take everything i walked out of the conference room and into the
53:12morning light roman was waiting by the elevator he didn't say anything he just fell into step beside me
53:19we rode the elevator down in silence when the doors opened to the lobby i stopped roman yes that
53:27conversation you mentioned the one that's seven years overdue he turned to face me his dark eyes
53:33unreadable i'm ready to have it now and for the first time since this all began the look on his
53:40face
53:41wasn't guarded or strategic or careful it was just hopeful we went back to sale's restaurant it was 11
53:51a.m on a tuesday the place was nearly empty sale took one look at us brought out two espressos
53:57and a
53:58chessboard and disappeared into the kitchen roman sat across from me his jacket off sleeves rolled to his
54:04forearms without the armor of a boardroom he looked younger almost like the man i'd known in london
54:10almost seven years he said seven years i echoed you left without a word one day you were there the
54:17next
54:18gone no coal no letter nothing my parents had just died roman i inherited a 12 billion dollar company
54:28i didn't know existed in a legacy i wasn't prepared to carry i was 20 years old and the lawyers
54:34told me
54:35that anyone close to me could become a target so you pushed everyone away i pushed you away there's a
54:42difference you could have told me and what would you have done dropped everything followed me into
54:49a world of corporate warfare and billion dollar decisions you had your own family your own empire
54:56to build i would have been there aurelia that's what i would have done the simplicity of it broke
55:03something inside me i wrapped my hands around the espresso cup i made a choice i chose to disappear
55:11to build walls to handle everything alone and then i married derek because i wanted to feel normal
55:19i wanted someone who didn't know about the money the name the weight of it and instead
55:25you got someone who didn't know you at all yes roman reached across the table your move he said
55:34i moved the queen first he smiled aurelia i'm not gonna pretend the last seven years didn't happen
55:40you hurt me deeply and i spent a long time being angry about it i know but i also spent
55:49that time
55:50building something corsetti holdings isn't just real estate anymore we have security divisions
55:57intelligence networks legal teams that rival any firm in the country i built all of it and some part of
56:05me built it because i knew i knew that one day you'd need someone in your corner who couldn't be
56:11bought
56:13threatened or broken i stared at the board my throat was tight that's either the most romantic thing
56:20anyone's ever said to me or the most terrifying
56:26it's both i lived upon he moved a knight what happens now i asked
56:34now victor hale faces an sec investigation potential criminal charges and the complete dismantling of his
56:42scheme veinsi will surface eventually probably in a country without an extradition treaty derek will spend the
56:48rest of his life trying to rebuild a reputation that may be beyond saving i meant with us roman's hand
56:54paused over the board i know what you meant he looked at me really looked at me and i saw
57:00everything
57:01he'd been holding back seven years of waiting seven years of watching from a distance seven years of
57:07building an empire partly just to be worthy of standing next to me i'm not proposing anything aurelia
57:13not tonight you just finished a war you need time to breathe i've been holding my breath for five years
57:22i'm done waiting to breathe something shifted in his eyes the guarded wall came down not all at once but
57:29enough enough for me to see the man behind the strategy the silence the chess moves then let's
57:35start with dinner he said a real one not a strategy session not an intelligence briefing just two people
57:44who spent too long pretending they don't need each other tomorrow night tonight his voice was soft i've
57:53waited long enough i looked at the chessboard between us then i reached over and tipped my king
57:59you're conceding he raised an eyebrow no i smiled i'm clearing the board we don't need a game between us
58:06anymore
58:06he held my gaze then slowly he reached across the table and took my hand his grip was warm steady
58:14real outside the city hummed with its relentless rhythm deals being made empires rising and falling
58:20people chasing power they'd never quite catch but in a tiny italian astraunt on the lower east side
58:27two people who had spent seven years running from each other finally stopped and for the first time
58:32in longer than i could remember i didn't feel like a queen or a ceo or someone's ex-wife i
58:39just felt like aurelia
58:41aurelia and that was enough
Comments