Chapter 5 - The Stolen Name
The silence in the boardroom was suffocating. Outside, lightning fractured the black sky, casting stark shadows across the faces of the terrified board members.
Mark did not look at the papers on the table. His hand rested instinctively over Leo’s small head, feeling the warmth of the baby's breath against his chest. ""You're lying.""
""Am I?"" Julian laughed softly, gesturing toward the folder. ""Why do you think Victoria married you, Mark? You were always the favored son, the golden boy who got the CEO chair while I was banished to Switzerland. But Victoria was mine first. When you brought her to the Geneva gala three years ago, the spark never died.""
Arthur Pendelton cleared his throat, avoiding Mark’s gaze. ""Mark, the lab results carry the official seal of the Geneva Institute of Genetics. Julian provided the reference samples. If Leo is not your biological son, the Sterling trust fund’s protective covenants dissolve automatically. Julian holds thirty-five percent of the voting shares. Combined with the board’s vote tonight, you no longer have a majority.""
""You helped Victoria arrange the insurance policy,"" Mark whispered, the puzzle pieces slamming together in his mind. ""You wanted the baby dead. If Leo died, Victoria would claim the insurance money, Julian would step into the vacuum as the sole remaining heir, and the board would hand him the crown.""
Julian didn't deny it; his smirk only broadened. ""A compelling theory. But Victoria is in a holding cell facing thirty years, and I am standing here with clean hands, clean money, and the board’s unanimous blessing. Security, escort Mr. Sterling out of the building. He is trespassing.""
Mark’s four private contractors didn't move. They remained loyal to Mark’s personal payroll.
""Don't do anything foolish, Mark,"" Julian warned, stepping behind Arthur. ""You walk out of here with the boy, or the police arrest you for corporate espionage and breach of fiduciary duty before sunrise.""
Mark looked around the table. Men and women he had made multi-millionaires looked down at their polished desks, cowards bought by Julian’s promises of inflated dividends.
""Keep the building,"" Mark said coldly, stepping back toward the exit. ""Keep the chairs and the title. But this company was built on my code and my patents. When it burns, Julian, make sure you're inside.""
Mark turned and stepped into the elevator. As the doors slid shut, his phone vibrated.
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It was Detective Vance from the police precinct.
""Mark, you need to get down to the precinct right now,"" Vance said, his voice laced with dread. ""Victoria didn't make it to her cell. Two men intercepted the transport van on the bridge. She’s gone.""
