Chapter 5 - The Boardroom of Shadows
At ten-forty-five that morning, the sixty-fourth floor of the Thorne Cybersecurity Tower in downtown Boston was filled with intense, predatory anticipation.
Thirty senior institutional shareholders, Wall Street private equity directors, and corporate litigation partners sat around the seventy-foot black granite conference table.
The floor-to-ceiling glass windows offered a panoramic view of Boston Harbor glittering under the crisp morning sun.
Arthur, Beatrice, and Cassandra sat at the head of the table on the executive dais, exuding the haughty, untouchable arrogance of newly crowned monarchs.
Cassandra was casually recording short videos for her social media channels, showing off the executive view and tagging herself as the incoming Director of Corporate Communications.
Arthur adjusted his gold cufflinks, leaning over to whisper to his personal attorney, Richard Sterling.
“Is the private transport team positioned outside the Beacon Hill brownstone to clear the pantry, Richard?” Arthur asked in a low murmur.
“The van is idling in the alley, Arthur,” Richard confirmed, tapping his phone.
“The moment you execute the proxy signature on the video feed, the extraction team will transport the girl and the boy to the Bangor facility.”
At precisely eleven o'clock, the double frosted-glass doors of the boardroom swung open with commanding majesty.
Ethan walked into the chamber, carrying himself with the terrifying, regal authority of an emperor stepping into a defeated province.
Behind him walked Lead Special Agent Marcus Reed of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, flanked by four senior forensic examiners from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The thirty corporate directors rose from their leather chairs in synchronized respect, bowing their heads toward the thirty-four-year-old tech billionaire.
Arthur smiled triumphantly, picking up a gold-plated Montblanc fountain pen from the desk.
“Gentlemen of the board, foreign partners, and esteemed colleagues,” Arthur announced in a booming voice that filled the room.
“Today marks a historic transition of sovereign governance for Thorne Global Technologies!”
“To protect our proprietary defense patents from international market volatility, my son Ethan is executing an unconditional master proxy transfer to the Thorne Family Sovereign Trust!”
Arthur slid the crimson-ribboned parchment toward himself, scrawling his bold, arrogant signature across the primary trustee line of Clause 7.
Beatrice immediately stepped forward, signing her name as the secondary managing director with a flourishing loop.
Cassandra giggled with delight, signing her name as the executive corporate secretary on the final witness line.
“It is done!” Arthur proclaimed, raising the signed document before the boardroom cameras with radiant, triumphant pride.
Ethan stood at the foot of the table, his arms folded across his chest, watching the three vultures sign their own doom without blinking an eye.
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“Thank you, Father, Mother, Cassandra,” Ethan spoke in a clear, resonant baritone that cut through the room like an arctic blade.
“You have just officially executed Clause 7.”
