Chapter 5 - A NEW MANAGEMENT
The next morning, the sun rose over Manhattan, casting a golden glow on the glass facade of the Cole-Bennett Hospitality tower.
Grace walked through the double glass doors of the lobby at precisely 8:00 AM. She wasn't wearing her usual understated pastels. Today, she wore a sharp, tailored charcoal suit, her hair pulled back into a severe, elegant chignon. Beside her walked Martin Hale and two heavily armed corporate security guards.
The receptionist, usually eager to ignore the "quiet wife," immediately stood up. "Mrs. Cole! I mean, Ms. Bennett. Mr. Cole isn't here—"
"I know," Grace said seamlessly. "He doesn't work here anymore."
She bypassed the front desk and stepped into the private executive elevator. When the doors opened on the top floor, chaos reigned. Executives were running between offices, screaming into phones, trying to salvage their stock options.
Grace walked into the main boardroom. She took the seat at the head of the long mahogany table—Ethan's seat.
"Good morning," she said. Her voice wasn't loud, but it cut through the panic like a scalpel.
The executives froze.
"As of 9:00 AM today, Vanguard Holdings has absorbed the defaulted debt of this corporation," Grace announced, sliding a stack of legal documents onto the table. "In exchange for the debt forgiveness, Vanguard has executed a hostile takeover of all Cole-Bennett assets. I am the sole owner."
David, the CFO, looked like he was going to cry with relief. "Ms. Bennett... you're saving the company?"
"I am saving my company," Grace corrected him smoothly. "My first order of business is restructuring. The corporate jet is being sold. The Bali expansion is cancelled. And Ethan Cole is permanently barred from the premises."
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Just as the words left her mouth, the boardroom doors flew open.
Ethan stood there, breathless, his hair disheveled, wearing the same rumpled suit from the airport. He looked like a madman.
