Chapter 1 - The Ultimatum
Claire looked at her husband and felt a strange, terrifying calm settle over her.
“What do we need to discuss, Ethan?” she asked.
Ethan gestured for Vanessa to step back, though he kept his hand on her lower back.
“My lawyers will be serving you with divorce papers tomorrow morning.”
Claire did not blink.
She did not cry.
“At a charity gala, Ethan?” she asked quietly.
“It’s purely strategic,” Ethan replied smoothly, checking his expensive watch.
“If the news breaks tomorrow that I am restructuring my personal life, the board wants to know the transition will be seamless.”
Vanessa offered a sympathetic smile that looked entirely rehearsed.
“We really want this to be amicable, Claire.”
Claire stared at the woman wearing her husband’s diamonds.
“Who is we?” Claire asked.
Ethan sighed in exasperation.
“Vanessa is going to be my new partner, both in life and in Cole Meridian.”
“She understands the modern logistics landscape better than anyone.”
“And since you signed that postnuptial agreement five years ago, you will walk away with a very generous ten million dollars.”
Claire tilted her head.
“Ten million dollars out of a twelve billion dollar company?”
“You stopped contributing to this company a decade ago, Claire,” Ethan said coldly.
“I built this empire.”
“I own the warehouses.”
“I own the trucks.”
“You own nothing.”
Claire looked at his arrogant face and realized he truly believed his own lies.
He had forgotten the nights she spent coding the proprietary routing algorithm that made his entire fleet function.
He had forgotten that the software license was registered in her maiden name.
“You’re right, Ethan,” Claire said softly.
“I don’t own the trucks.”
She turned around and began walking toward the exit.
“I’m glad you’re finally being reasonable!” Ethan called out after her.
Claire pushed through the heavy glass doors and stepped into the freezing Chicago night.
She pulled her cell phone from her purse and opened a hidden application she had built seven years ago.
She typed in a thirty-two character password.
A single prompt appeared on the glowing screen.
Revoke Master License for Cole Meridian Core System?
Claire pressed yes.
May you like
A loading bar flashed across her screen before turning solid green.
Inside the ballroom behind her, the music suddenly stopped as a deafening alarm began to blare.
