Chapter 5 - Crushing the Foundation
Spencer scrambled to his feet, rubbing his wrist, his eyes darting wildly between me and my father.
“Mr. Harrell,” Spencer pleaded, changing tactics. He put on his best salesman smile, though it looked sickly and desperate. “There’s been a misunderstanding. Phoebe is my wife. We have a beautiful home. I’ve built a massive company—”
“You have built nothing,” my father interrupted.
His voice wasn't loud, but it carried the weight of a judge passing a death sentence.
Raymond Harrell stepped forward, taking the microphone from the MC's podium.
He didn't tap it. He just spoke.
“Ladies and gentlemen. I came here tonight for two reasons. The first was to formally introduce my daughter, Phoebe Harrell, the sole heir to the Harrell fortune, who is returning to her rightful place as Vice Chairman of my empire.”
The room erupted into applause.
I smiled, nodding gracefully to the crowd.
Spencer looked like he was going to throw up.
“The second reason,” my father continued, the warmth leaving his voice entirely, “was to correct a grievous error in my company’s investment portfolio.”
He looked directly at Spencer.
“Three years ago, an anonymous angel investor provided the seed money for Conway Tech. That investor was my daughter, who pawned her mother's heirloom jewelry to fund a man who didn't deserve it.”
Whispers exploded.
Spencer froze, the color draining from his face all over again.
He had always bragged about how investors practically begged to fund him on day one.
“Furthermore,” my father said relentlessly, “the Apex Group has extended millions in unsecured lines of credit to Conway Tech. This was done under my strict, silent orders, to protect my daughter's future. It was a safety net for a company that produces mediocre products and is run by an incompetent, arrogant fool.”
People actually laughed.
Spencer’s humiliation was absolute.
“As of this exact moment,” my father announced, checking his diamond-encrusted watch. “The Harrell family is officially pulling all support. Apex Group is calling in its debts. Conway Tech is no longer backed by us.”
Chaos broke out.
Men in the room who had invested in Spencer pulled out their phones immediately.
“Sell it all!” one CEO shouted to his broker. “Dump Conway Tech now!”
“Cancel the contracts!” another executive yelled.
I watched as Spencer's entire world, everything he valued more than me, burned to ash in less than sixty seconds.
His phone started buzzing frantically in his pocket.
Notifications of stocks plummeting.
Banks freezing assets.
Investors pulling out.
He pulled his phone out, staring at the screen as the numbers crashed to zero.
“No... no, no, no,” he muttered, tears finally welling up in his eyes.
He turned to Paisley, grabbing her shoulders. “Paisley, tell your father! Tell your father's bank to cover the margin call! We can fix this!”
Paisley ripped herself out of his grip, looking at him with utter disgust.
“Are you crazy? My father isn't going to war with Raymond Harrell over a bankrupt loser!”
She took a step back, distancing herself from him as if he had a contagious disease.
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“Don't ever call me again, Spencer,” she spat.
She turned on her heel and practically ran out of the gala, leaving him entirely alone in the center of the room.
