Chapter 3 - The Boardroom Confrontation
By Wednesday, with only four days left before the wedding, the pressure had reached a boiling point. Eleanor’s threats had turned into desperate pleas, but she was still too proud to apologize directly. Instead, she tried to bypass me by going straight to the board of directors of Bennett Industries.
She had managed to pressure Julian into calling an emergency meeting at our corporate headquarters, claiming there was a "breach of contract" regarding the corporate sponsorship.
When I walked into our executive boardroom, I found Eleanor sitting at the head of the table, wearing a designer cream suit and heavy pearl necklace. Julian sat beside her, looking deeply uncomfortable. Two of my senior board members, whom Eleanor had tried to charm, were also present.
"Ah, Catherine," Eleanor said, raising her chin. "I’m glad you could join us. I was just explaining to your board how your personal, emotional instability is actively damaging Bennett Industries' reputation by breaching a formal sponsorship agreement."
I took a seat at the opposite end of the table, placing my tablet down. "Is that so, Eleanor? Please, enlighten me. What contract did I breach?"
"The sponsorship for the Vance-sterling wedding!" Eleanor declared, slamming her hand on the mahogany table. "Bennett Industries publicly committed to funding the catering and venue as part of a high-society community outreach program! Pulling that funding six days before the event is a massive PR disaster for your little company!"
I let out a soft laugh that echoed in the quiet room.
"First of all, Eleanor, Bennett Industries is not a 'little company.' We manufactured the precision parts for the very medical devices that keep your local hospital running. Second, there is no public contract."
I tapped my tablet, casting a document onto the large screen at the front of the room.
"This is the sponsorship agreement," I pointed out. "As you can see, it was a discretionary charitable grant signed by me, and me alone, as the majority shareholder. It explicitly states that the sponsor retains the right to withdraw funding at any time, without prior notice, if the event fails to align with the core values of inclusivity and respect promoted by Bennett Industries."
Eleanor’s face flushed a deep, angry crimson. "What does that have to do with anything?!"
"Your actions on Monday night—publicly humiliating and discriminating against a child with a medical visual impairment—actively violate our corporate code of conduct," I said smoothly. "I have the entire incident on video, by the way. Several guests were filming the rehearsal."
I looked over at my board members. "Gentlemen, if we sponsor an event where the organizers openly discriminate against disabled children, our brand reputation will be destroyed. I withdrew the funds to protect this company."
The board members looked at the documents, then at Eleanor, and quickly nodded in agreement. "Mrs. Vance, Catherine is entirely correct. We cannot associate our brand with this kind of public relations liability."
"This is absurd!" Eleanor shrieked, standing up. "She's doing this out of spite because she's jealous of our family's heritage! Julian, tell them!"
Julian looked at his mother, then at me. His lips parted, but no sound came out. He knew that if he sided with his mother, I would cut him off financially as well. The luxury car he drove, the country club membership he enjoyed—all of it was funded by my income.
"Julian," Eleanor snapped. "Speak!"
"Mother... please," Julian whispered, his face pale. "Just... just apologize to Lily. We need that money."
Eleanor stared at her son in utter disbelief. "Apologize? To a six-year-old? Over purple glasses? I would rather cancel the entire wedding!"
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"Then I suggest you start calling your three hundred guests, Eleanor," I said, standing up and closing my tablet. "Because the caterers have already given you a deadline of 5:00 p.m. today to pay the deposit, or they are officially booking a corporate gala in your slot."
I walked out of the boardroom, leaving Eleanor screaming at the walls.
