Chapter 12 - THE WAITRESS WHO OWNED THE EMPIRE
I was unemployed.
Behind on rent.
Sharing leftover food with my grandmother.
And apparently owned thirty percent of a company worth billions.
I laughed for five straight minutes.
Vincent didn’t.
“This explains everything.”
“What?”
“Raymond couldn’t fully consolidate ownership while Rachel’s heir existed.”
I stopped laughing.
“He knew who I was.”
“Yes.”
“The elevator.”
“He needed confirmation.”
“The calls.”
“Pressure.”
“My firing.”
“Isolation.”
I felt sick.
“He wanted me desperate.”
Vincent nodded.
“Desperate people sign documents.”
Grandma reached into her bag.
“Which is why I never told Claire.”
I stared.
“You let us struggle.”
Her face broke.
“I thought poverty was safer than being hunted.”
That hurt.
But I understood the logic.
Not the choice.
Not entirely.
Investigators confirmed the shares existed inside an old trust.
Raymond had repeatedly tried to have me declared unreachable.
Then deceased.
He nearly succeeded twice.
But Grandma filed anonymous legal challenges.
For years.
“You did that?”
She nodded.
“I couldn’t claim the shares without exposing you.”
Vincent looked at the paperwork.
“If Claire activates ownership, she gets a board seat.”
I raised both hands.
“No.”
He looked at me.
“No?”
“I clean offices.”
“You’re intelligent.”
“I also have no interest in joining a criminal dynasty.”
A small smile appeared.
“Fair.”
Then he became serious.
“The legitimate businesses need restructuring.”
“What happens to the illegal ones?”
“Gone.”
I studied him.
“You mean that?”
“Yes.”
“Because I’m your cousin now?”
“No.”
His gaze held mine.
“Because you were right in the elevator.”
My chest tightened.
“About what?”
“Power isn’t permission.”
He looked toward the windows.
“I’ve spent years telling myself that if people feared me, I could control the damage my family caused.”
“And?”
“I became another reason people were afraid.”
That sounded like an admission he had never made before.
“What are you going to do?”
“Clean it up.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“That’s a very waitress word.”
“Occupational influence.”
I smiled.
For the first time, I wasn’t afraid of him.
Not completely.
Maybe I never should have been.
Then Luke entered.
“Raymond’s talking.”
Vincent stood.
“What did he say?”
Luke looked at me.
“He says Rachel’s shares aren’t the most important part of the trust.”
“What is?”
“Control transfers if Claire meets one condition.”
My stomach tightened.
“What condition?”
Luke swallowed.
“If she proves Arthur Hayes was murdered.”
Silence.
Then he added:
“And Raymond claims the proof is inside Eleanor’s apartment.”
I turned toward Grandma.
Her face went white.
“What?” I asked.
May you like
She whispered:
“Oh no.”
