Chapter 4 - The Betrayal Within
Three days later, the mansion felt like a prison. Damian had retreated to his study, drinking in the dark, trying to find a loophole in the documents Mr. Aldridge had presented.
He found one.
Hidden within a footnote of an old contract, he discovered a secondary trust—one that required a unanimous vote of the three original board members to finalize any major change in leadership. His grandfather, his mother, and... a third party.
He stormed into the dining room, where Isabella was finalizing the restructuring plans.
"I found it," Damian yelled, waving a dusty piece of paper. "The third party! It wasn't the Montrose Trust. It was my father’s business rival. If I get his signature, this entire 'takeover' is void."
Isabella looked at him with a mix of pity and sadness. "You’re going to align yourself with a man who spent twenty years trying to burn your company to the ground just to keep your seat of power?"
"I'd rather burn it with him than lose it to you!" Damian shouted.
Suddenly, the doors swung open. It was the police, accompanied by federal regulators. They weren't there for Isabella. They were there for Damian.
"Damian Cross," the lead officer said, holding a warrant. "You are under arrest for securities fraud and the illegal falsification of corporate records."
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Damian looked at Isabella, stunned. "You... you called them?"
"I didn't call them," Isabella said softly. "The auditors did. They found the discrepancies in your accounts. I just didn't stop them."
