From the tree line, dozens of SWAT officers emerged, surrounding the mercenaries. At their head, with his arm in a sling and his clothes singed, was Detective Cole.
“Told you I wouldn’t leave you, boss!” Cole shouted, aiming his weapon at Sterling.
Sterling tried to raise his weapon, but Arthur was faster. He lunged at the lawyer, taking him down with a brutal punch to the jaw.
The next morning, the boardroom of the Skyline Tower was packed. All the major shareholders were present, murmuring nervously. Sterling, with a split lip and in handcuffs, sat in a chair under police supervision, but the meeting had not been canceled.
The chairman of the board, a man named Garrison, banged his gavel on the table.
“Order! In light of last night’s incidents and the arrest of Mr. Sterling, we must vote immediately on the restructuring of the company. I move to declare Arthur Blackwood incapacitated and assume full control.”
“I second the motion,” another corrupt shareholder said.
“Just a minute!”
The double doors of the boardroom swung open. Arthur Blackwood strode in, clean, shaven, and dressed in a new suit that screamed power. But he wasn’t alone. At his side walked Anna. She was no longer wearing a waitress uniform or borrowed clothes. She was dressed in a white power suit, her head held high, her mother’s locket shining at her neck.
“You’re late for your own funeral, Arthur!” Garrison sneered, though he had gone pale. “You have no voting rights here. Sterling holds your proxy.”
“Sterling is going to prison for attempted murder,” Arthur said, throwing a file on the table. “And my proxy has been revoked. But I didn’t come here to vote. I came to introduce the majority shareholder of this company.” Arthur gestured to Anna. “Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to Grace Blackwood, my daughter and the sole heir of Eleanor Blackwood.”
A ripple of shock went through the room.
“That’s a lie!” Garrison shouted. “Eleanor died childless. This girl is an imposter. She’s a waitress from a restaurant.”
Anna, now Grace, took a step forward. Her voice didn’t waver.
“I am Eleanor’s daughter,” she said, looking Garrison in the eye. “And I have the DNA test results, the testimony of the man who saved me, and the necklace my mother was wearing when you ordered her car forced off the road.”
“Silas!” Arthur called out.
The old man entered the room, clean and in new clothes, escorted by Detective Cole.
“I saw Mr. Garrison paying those men that night,” Silas lied with conviction, pointing at the chairman. “I saw him in the parking lot of a roadside bar two hours before the crash.”
It was a bluff, but it worked. Garrison panicked.
“I wasn’t there!” he yelled. “Sterling arranged everything. He said he’d take care of the brakes!”
The room fell into absolute silence. Garrison clapped a hand over his mouth, realizing what he had just admitted. Cole smiled and held up his phone, which had been recording.
“Thank you for the confirmation, Mr. Garrison. You’re under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder.”
Police officers entered the room. Garrison tried to run for the window, but Arthur blocked his path.
“It’s over,” Arthur said. “My family is back, and you’re out.”
With Garrison and Sterling arrested, the chaos at the company quickly subsided. The news of the return of the lost Blackwood heiress made national headlines.
In the president’s office, Arthur poured two glasses of water. Grace stood before the massive window, looking out at the city that was now at her feet.
“Are you okay?”
Comments are closed.