Chapter 4 - The Assistant's Gambit
Two days after the boardroom showdown, the fallout was catastrophic for Hale Dynamics. Their stock had plummeted twenty-two percent. Financial commentators on CNBC were calling it the "Wedding Night Crash."
I was sitting in my corner office at Bennett Meridian headquarters, reviewing quarterly reports, when my secretary pressed the intercom.
"Miss Bennett, there is a woman downstairs in the lobby demanding to see you. She doesn't have an appointment, but she says it's urgent."
"Who is it?" I asked without looking up.
"Chloe Grant."
I paused, my pen hovering over the document. A cold, cynical smile touched my lips. She really believed she was untouchable, didn't she?
"Send her up," I said. "And tell security to stand by."
Five minutes later, the glass doors of my office opened. Chloe Grant walked in.
She looked vastly different from the polished, helpless girl who had sat on my bed three nights ago. She wore a simple dark sweater and jeans, her face pale, without makeup. She looked exhausted, panicked, and desperate.
"Michelle," she began, stepping into the room.
"That's Miss Bennett to you," I corrected her coldly, not bothering to invite her to sit down. "State your business, Chloe. I have five minutes before my next meeting."
Chloe closed the door behind her and took a shaky breath. She crossed her arms, trying to maintain some semblance of dignity.
"You need to stop this," Chloe said, her voice tight with suppressed anger. "You're destroying Ryan. He hasn't slept in three days. The board is stripping his authorities, his mother is hospitalized with stress, and the press is stalking his house!"
"And why is that my problem?" I asked casually, signing my name on a document.
"Because you're doing this out of jealousy!" Chloe shouted, losing her sweet, timid demeanor. "You hate me because Ryan cares about me! You hate that he listens to me instead of you! You think you can use your family's money to buy his loyalty, but you can't!"
I set my pen down slowly. I stood up from my leather chair and walked around my desk, stopping a few feet away from her. I was half a head taller than her, especially in my five-inch heels.
"Jealousy?" I chuckled softly, a sound filled with pure disdain. "Chloe, you vastly overestimate your place in the universe. Do you think I'm angry because I think you're a threat to me?"
"You walked out on your wedding night because of me!" she spat back.
"I walked out because my husband proved he had terrible judgment," I said, my voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "I didn't leave because I thought Ryan was sleeping with you. I left because I realized Ryan is a weak man who lets his assistant dictate his life. You're not a mistress, Chloe. You're a liability."
Chloe’s eyes flashed with venom. "He loved me long before he ever met you! I’ve been by his side for eight years! I built Hale Dynamics with him!"
"Then why didn't he marry you?" I asked plainly.
The question hit her like a physical blow. Chloe froze, her jaw dropping slightly, her eyes widening in shock.
"Why didn't he put a ring on your finger, Chloe?" I pressed forward, stepping into her space. "Why did he bring you to charity galas as his employee while he took me to meet his grandmother? Why did he keep you in the office while he proposed to me in Paris? I'll tell you why. Because to Ryan Hale, you are convenient. You pick up his dry cleaning, you stroke his ego, and you play the helpless victim whenever he needs to feel like a hero. But he would never make you his equal. And deep down, you know that."
Tears of pure rage streamed down Chloe’s face. "You're a monster," she whispered.
"No, I'm an executive," I corrected her. "And you are trespassing. Get out of my office before I have security escort you out in handcuffs."
Chloe swallowed hard, trembling with hatred. She reached into her purse and pulled out a small, metallic object, tossing it onto my mahogany desk.
It was the diamond bracelet—the Hale family heirloom.
"Take your stupid bracelet," Chloe spat, her voice shaking. "I never wanted it anyway."
She turned and stormed out of my office, slamming the heavy glass door behind her.
I walked back to my desk and picked up the bracelet. I looked at the sparkling diamonds under the LED lights.
Then I picked up my phone and dialed my head of security.
"Mark," I said. "Run a full forensic audit on Chloe Grant's company expense accounts and personal bank transfers for the last three years. I want to know every single dollar that has passed between her and Hale Dynamics."
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"Right away, Miss Bennett," Mark replied. "Are you looking for something specific?"
"A woman who feels entitled to a man's empire usually finds ways to pay herself for her loyalty," I said coldly. "Find the receipts."