Chapter 2 - The Cracks in the Empire
"You're lying," Derek spat, standing up so fast his chair scraped violently against the patio bricks. "Camden Logistics is doing fine! Dad just signed the expansion contract last month!"
"The expansion contract that you secured by inflating your asset valuations by forty percent?" Maris turned her gaze to Derek, her eyes like chipped ice. "I’m an accountant, Derek. Did you really think I wouldn't look at the public filings? You used the family home as collateral for a high-risk predatory loan to cover up the fact that you lost our biggest shipping client in January because you were too busy partying in Cabo."
Derek froze, looking at his father. Franklin’s silence was the ultimate confirmation.
"Franklin?" his wife, Eleanor, called out from the porch steps, her voice trembling. "What is she talking about? Our home? You risked our home?"
Franklin finally looked up from the papers, his jaw clenched, veins bulging in his neck. "You think you're clever, don't you? You think you can walk in here with some legal tricks and humiliate me in front of my family? I built this name! I built everything you see!"
"No, you built a facade," Maris replied calmly. "You spent nineteen years telling me I was a disgrace while you handed millions to your 'built men' who didn't even know how to read a balance sheet. I offered to help you with the books five years ago, Dad. Do you remember what you told me?"
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Franklin glared at her, refusing to speak.
"You told me that women are meant to clear the plates, not manage the money," Maris said, her voice dropping to a whisper that cut through the yard. "So I left. And I built my own firm. And today, I came back to clear the plates."
