Chapter 4 - THE BOARDROOM COUP
The board meeting was a disaster for Grant. Eleanor walked into the boardroom not as his wife, but as an independent consultant, invited by Ruth to provide an audit of the current design direction of the company.
Grant sat at the head of the table, his face ashen. He looked at Eleanor, then at his grandmother. He realized, with a sickening jolt, that he had been outmaneuvered.
“We are here to discuss the performance of the CEO,” Ruth announced, her voice echoing in the sterile room. “And to address the breach of fiduciary duty regarding unauthorized expenditures on private interests.”
Eleanor presented her audit. It was flawless. It pointed out the mismanagement of funds—funds diverted to pay for the secret lifestyle Grant had been leading. It was the nail in the coffin.
Grant stood up, his face twisted in a mask of desperation. “This is a vendetta! Eleanor is bitter because of the divorce! You can’t trust her!”
“I trust the numbers, Grant,” Eleanor said, her voice devoid of emotion. “The numbers don't lie. You do.”
The vote was unanimous. Grant was stripped of his title, his access, and his authority. He stood in the silent boardroom, watching as the people he had once cowed into submission began packing his personal belongings into cardboard boxes.
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As he walked past Eleanor, he stopped. “You think this makes you happy? You’re just like them. Cold. Calculating.”
“No, Grant,” Eleanor replied. “I’m just like the hotels I built. I’m honest about the foundations I stand on. You never were.”
