Alex stepped out of his office, his expression steely. The weight of the upcoming board eting was pressing down on him.
As he closed the door, he almost collided with Claire, who stood just outside with a determined look on her face.
"Claire," Alex greeted, his tone softer than his expression.
"Alex," Claire replied briskly, studying his face. "You ready for this?"
"I am," Alex said, his voice steady. "But there's sothing I need to show you first."
Claire raised an eyebrow. "What is it?" she asked, looking at him curiously.
Without a word, Alex handed her his phone. Claire looked at him in a questioning manner. "Why are you giving this?"
"What I need to show you is on it," Alex said simply, nodding toward the screen.
Claire hesitated, then glanced down at the phone. Her eyes scanned the email Alex had opened for her, and her face shifted from curiosity to shock.
"This..." she began, her voice trembling slightly. "This is evidence of embezzlent."
"By Jake," Alex confird grimly.
"For over five years?" Claire's voice grew louder with disbelief as she scrolled through the detailed report. "How long have you known about this?"
"Mark just sent it," Alex explained. "It ca up during the investigation into the scandal. It turns out Jake has been siphoning funds through shell companies tied to external contractors. He's been bleeding this company dry for years."
Claire's hands trembled as she handed the phone back to Alex. "This... this is unforgivable. I don't care if he's my nephew or not. I want him arrested. Right now. He can't do this to the company and expect to forgive him when I found out. He's done enough."
Alex placed a calming hand on her shoulder. "I agree. But let's get through the board eting first. The timing needs to be precise. We'll handle him after the eting, that is, if he doesn't give us a chance to use it against him during the eting," Alex said, and Claire raised a brow.
"What do you an?" she asked, and Alex shrugged.
"I think he'll try sothing at the eting. It has to be the reason he disclosed our family business out there, knowing it would affect the company," Alex said, and Claire shook her head.
"This is the more reason I should get him arrested imdiately," Claire said hotly and Alex flashed her a disapproving look.
"After the eting. At least him doing sothing would be to our advantage so people don't start saying we don't value blood relations. You know it'll only get worse if news of my adoption gets out," Alex said reasonably, and Claire considered it for a mont.
Claire exhaled after a mont, her fury barely contained. "Fine. But the mont we're done in there, he's done."
Alex nodded. "Agreed."
Together, they walked toward the boardroom. Just outside the doors, they ca face to face with Jake.
Seeing them, he also stopped to face them. Jake stood there with a smug expression as if he had already anticipated what the eting would entail.
"Aunt Claire," Jake said in a falsely respectful tone, his eyes flicking between her and Alex. "What are you doing here? Cleaning up Alex's ss again, I assu?"
Alex's jaw tightened, but he didn't respond; he rely shook his head. Looking at Jake, Emma's thoughts flashed through his mind, and he couldn't help wondering how Emma must've lived a year with soone like Jake.
Jake chuckled lightly, his gaze locking onto Alex. "You're lucky to have her, you know. A good sister like Claire always fixing things for you."
Claire turned her icy glare toward Jake, her composure dangerously close to cracking. "Are you even my sister's child?" she asked, her voice coming out more sharply than she intended.
Jake blinked, confused by her sudden hostility. "What's that supposed to an?" he asked, a frown creasing his brows.
Claire crossed her arms and shook her head, her voice laced with disappointnt. "I should have known better. Maybe if I'd taken you under my wing when you were younger, you wouldn't have turned out like your father."
Jake's smirk faltered, and he took a step back. "What are you talking about?" he asked again, wondering where all that was coming from.
But Claire didn't answer. Instead, she shook her head again, her expression a mixture of anger and regret, and pushed open the doors to the boardroom.
Alex followed her without a word, leaving Jake to stand in the hallway, bewildered and increasingly uneasy.
Inside the boardroom, the directors were already seated, their expressions grim. The tension was palpable as Alex and Claire took their seats at the head of the table. Jake entered shortly after, his confidence sowhat diminished, though he quickly masked it with his usual arrogance.
The eting began with the usual formalities, but it wasn't long before one of the directors, Mr. Henshaw cleared his throat and stood.
"Ladies and gentlen," Mr. Henshaw began, glancing around the room. "Given the recent controversies surrounding Mr. Alexander Sterling and their potential impact on the company's reputation and financial stability, I propose a motion to consider a leadership change."
A murmur rippled through the room. Alex remained calm, though his jaw tightened.
Hearing this, Claire glanced toward Alex, who shrugged, telling her that this was Jake's move. Claire shook her head and then turned to glance at Jake, who was smiling smugly now.
"Such a disappointnt," Claire muttered.
Henshaw, oblivious to the turmoil brewing underneath his first statent, continued, "I suggest we vote to instate Mr. Jake Thompson as interim CEO until the company regains its footing. His clean public record and fresh perspective might be just what we need to reassure investors and stabilize operations."
Jake's smug smile widened as he leaned back in his chair, nodding as if this was a foregone conclusion.
"Excuse ," Claire said sharply, her voice cutting through the room like a blade. "Before we entertain such a motion, there's sothing the board needs to see."
The directors looked at her in surprise as Alex handed the phone to Mr. Caldwell, the head director.
"This," Alex said, his voice calm but firm, "is evidence of embezzlent by Jake Thompson. For over five years, he's been siphoning funds from this company into shell corporations."
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