Chapter 4 - The Boardroom Awakening
Monday morning arrived like a thunderstorm.
Dominic had spent the entire weekend packing his belongings, sleeping on a friend’s couch because the building security had physically escorted him out on Sunday.
He was exhausted, furious, and utterly confused.
But he still had his company.
Apex Tech was his pride and joy, valued at over fifty million dollars thanks to three major venture capital firms.
As long as he had Apex, he could rebuild. He could hire lawyers. He could find me.
He walked into his glass-walled office, barking orders at his assistant to get me on the phone.
“Sir,” his assistant said, her voice trembling. “The board members are in the conference room.”
“They aren't supposed to meet until next month,” Dominic snapped.
“They insisted. They said it was urgent.”
Dominic straightened his tie, pasting on his usual confident smirk.
He walked into the conference room, ready to dazzle them with the latest quarter projections.
There were four men at the table.
None of them were smiling.
“Gentlemen,” Dominic said smoothly. “To what do I owe this surprise?”
Marcus Sterling, the lead investor, didn't offer a greeting.
He simply slid a thick binder across the polished mahogany table.
“We’re pulling our funding, Dominic,” Marcus said flatly.
Dominic froze. The smirk vanished from his face.
“Excuse me? You can’t do that. We have contracts. We are hitting our milestones!”
“Read the contingency clause on page forty-two,” Marcus replied, leaning back in his chair.
“Our investment was tied to a character and stability clause, guaranteed by a third-party underwriter.”
Dominic grabbed the binder, flipping frantically through the pages.
“What third-party underwriter? I never agreed to that!”
“You didn’t have to,” Marcus said coldly.
“The only reason any of us looked at your startup two years ago was because we were asked to as a personal favor.”
Dominic looked up, his face pale. “A favor? By who?”
The doors to the conference room opened.
My father walked in.
He didn’t look at Dominic.
He walked to the head of the table, and every single man in the room stood up in immediate, deferential respect.
“Mr. Brooks,” Marcus said, nodding deeply.
Dominic stared at the older man.
He recognized him instantly.
He had seen his face on the cover of Forbes, on financial news networks, and in global economic forums.
Charles Brooks.
“What is going on?” Dominic whispered, his voice cracking.
My father slowly turned his gaze to Dominic.
The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees.
“Two years ago, a mediocre tech bro managed to convince my daughter that he loved her,” my father said, his voice quiet but echoing like thunder.
“Because she loved you, I decided to ensure you wouldn’t fail.”
“I quietly instructed these gentlemen to fund you.”
“I subsidized your luxury apartment.”
“I bought the car you drove to impress people who are currently laughing at you.”
Dominic gripped the edge of the table.
“Your daughter... Audrey?”
“Audrey Brooks,” my father corrected sharply.
“She wanted to be loved for herself, not her inheritance. She begged me to let you believe she was ordinary.”
“And how did you repay her devotion?”
My father stepped closer, planting his hands on the table, leaning into Dominic’s space.
“You handed her bus fare while she bled from surgery, so you wouldn't be late for lunch.”
Dominic couldn't breathe.
The room spun.
Audrey wasn't a middle-class girl.
She was the sole heir to a multi-billion-dollar empire.
And he had thrown her away for a reservation at a steakhouse.
“The funding is gone, Dominic,” my father said softly.
“Your company is effectively bankrupt as of nine o'clock this morning.”
“Your assets are frozen.”
“You are nothing.”
My father turned and walked toward the door.
“Wait!” Dominic shouted in a panic. “Mr. Brooks, please! I didn’t know!”
May you like
My father paused at the door, glancing back over his shoulder.
“Ignorance is not an excuse for cruelty. Enjoy the bus, Dominic.”
