Chapter 4 - The Boardroom in the Sky
Four hours remaining until touchdown in Madrid.
While Julian sat in 2A, frantically refreshing his laptop screen—only to discover that the inflight Wi-Fi had mysteriously stopped working for his specific device, thanks to a quiet MAC-address block I requested from the cockpit—I was running a global corporate war from the flight deck computer.
I had stepped into the cockpit under the pretext of delivering fresh coffee to Captain Miller and First Officer Davis.
"Everything alright back there, Clara?" Captain Miller asked, sipping his dark roast. "Purser Marcus mentioned a passenger in First Class was getting a bit aggressive."
"Under control, Captain," I said smoothly. "Just a high-profile corporate legal issue involving one of our major account holders. I need to make a secure satellite call to our legal team in New York."
"Go ahead," Miller nodded, gesturing to the secondary communications system. "You know the drill."
I put on the headset and dialed Arthur Vance’s direct line.
"Clara," Arthur’s voice came through crystal clear over the satellite link. "The emergency board meeting just concluded."
"And?"
"It was a slaughterhouse," Arthur said, a rare note of grim satisfaction in his voice. "We presented the forged $18.7 million transfer, the secondary books for Aura Holdings, and the corporate card statements detailing his purchases for Chloe Dupont. The board voted unanimously—11 to 0—to terminate Julian Mercer as Chief Executive Officer effective immediately, for cause."
A cold wave of relief washed over me. "What about his equity?"
"Triggered under the bad-actor clause of your founding charter," Arthur explained. "His shares have been converted into non-voting treasury stock pending criminal restitution. You are now the interim CEO, effective five minutes ago. I’ve already notified the SEC and our prime brokers."
"What about the wire transfer?" I asked, looking through the cockpit window at the endless starry expanse over the Atlantic Ocean.
"The Frankfurt correspondent bank processed the fraud hold forty-five minutes ago based on your revoked seal," Arthur replied. "The $18.7 million has been routed back into our primary operating treasury account in New York. Julian’s personal accounts have been frozen by court order."
"And his credit cards?"
Arthur chuckled darkly. "Let’s just say if he tries to buy a pack of gum when he walks into the Madrid terminal, the transaction will be declined."
"Thank you, Arthur," I said quietly. "Is the Spanish legal team prepared?"
"Interpol and the Guardia Civil's financial crimes unit are coordinated," Arthur confirmed. "They have the extradition warrant signed by the federal judge in New York. As soon as that plane reaches Spanish jurisdiction, Julian Mercer is a international fugitive."
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I took off the headset, handed it back to First Officer Davis, and straightened my Purser wings pinned to my chest.
The stage was completely set. Julian thought he was arriving in Europe to sign the biggest deal of his life, accompanied by his young mistress and funded by my stolen fortune. Instead, he was flying directly into an inescapable cage.
