Part 11:

Isabella wanted to bury it, handle it quietly, get the money back through a settlement, avoid the publicity. Daniel disagreed. You go to the police, he said. You report it. You make it public. That’ll make the foundation look incompetent. The foundation was incompetent, but now it’s not. And the only way people know that is if you show them you’re willing to hold people accountable.

It’ll be a nightmare. Probably. The board will lose their minds. Let them. Isabella looked at him for a long moment. Then she picked up her phone and called her lawyer. The story broke 3 days later. Foundation defrauded of $1.5 million over 3 years. Criminal investigation launched. Isabella Grant vows complete overhaul of grant procedures.

The press had a field day. Half the articles praised her transparency. The other half questioned how it had been allowed to happen in the first place. The board called an emergency meeting. Isabella told Daniel he didn’t need to be there, but he insisted. He’d helped create this mess, or at least helped uncover it.

He wasn’t going to hide while she dealt with the consequences. The boardroom was on the 50th floor. 12 men in expensive suits, all looking at Isabella like she’d disappointed them. The chairman, a man named Robert Caendish, who’d known her father, opened the meeting. Isabella, this is a disaster. The foundation was supposed to enhance Grant Industries reputation, not damage it.

The disaster was allowing fraud to happen for 3 years. Isabella shot back. I’m fixing it by embarrassing the company and the press by being honest about what happened and making sure it never happens again. You should have handled this privately and let Thomas Brennan get away with stealing from programs meant to help people.

No, this isn’t about helping people. This is about you trying to look like a hero. Daniel stood up. Every head in the room turned toward him. With respect, sir, you’re wrong. Cavendish’s eyebrows rose. I’m sorry. Who are you? Daniel Brooks. I’m the one who found the fraud. Then perhaps you should have been more discreet about it.

Why? So you could all keep pretending everything was fine. The foundation was hemorrhaging money to fraudsters and incompetence and none of you noticed. Because none of you cared enough to look. How dare you? I dare because someone has to. You want to know what Isabella has been doing for the last 2 months? She’s been personally reviewing every grant, meeting with every organization, asking questions that should have been asked years ago.

She’s been doing the work that Richard Pollson was being paid to do and didn’t. And instead of thanking her, you’re mad that she’s making you look bad. The room went dead silent. Caendish’s face turned purple. Isabella, control your employee. He’s not my employee. He’s a consultant, and he’s right. This is unacceptable.

If you can’t handle this situation, then what? You’ll remove me as CEO. Go ahead and try. I own 42% of the company. My father made sure I had control. You can whine. You can threaten. But you can’t do anything except sit there and watch while I clean up the mess you all helped create by not paying attention. Cavendish stood up.

This meeting is over. No, it’s not, Isabella said. Sit down, Robert. The words were quiet but had edges. Caendish sat. Here’s what’s going to happen. Isabella continued, “The foundation is being completely restructured. New oversight, new procedures, new leadership. And if any of you have a problem with that, I suggest you remember that the foundation’s money comes from company profits.

My company, which means it’s my money, and I’ll spend it however I want.” She gathered her things and stood up. Meeting adjourned. She walked out. Daniel followed. In the elevator, neither of them spoke until they reached the ground floor. That was intense. Daniel said that was necessary. They’re going to make your life difficult.

They’ve been making my life difficult since I took over. At least now I have a reason to fight back. They walked out into the afternoon sun. People rushed past them on the sidewalk. Everyone going somewhere important. Everyone too busy to notice. Thank you, Isabella said, for having my back in there. That’s what friends do. She looked at him surprised.

Is that what we are, friends? I think so. Yeah. Isabella smiled and it was real. No performance, no calculation, just genuine happiness. I’ve never had a friend who wasn’t on my payroll before. Well, technically I am on your payroll. Technically, but we both know that’s not why you’re here. They stood there on the sidewalk.

Two people from completely different worlds who’d somehow ended up in the same place. I should get Sophie, Daniel said. Say hi to her for me. You could come with. She’s been asking when you’re visiting again. Isabella hesitated. I have a call with Tokyo in an hour. Reschedule it. I can’t just Sure you can. You’re the CEO.

If you can’t reschedule a call to have dinner with friends, what’s the point of being in charge? Isabella pulled out her phone, typed something, then put it away. Okay, let’s go get Sophie. And just like that, something fundamental shifted. The walls came down a little more. The distance closed a little further.

👉 [Tap here for Next Part] 👈