The Meeting That Could Not Wait
Chapter 04 - The Meeting That Could Not Wait
Julian sent two company attorneys to the mansion with a second copy of the succession agreement. They arrived in less than twenty minutes, as if they had already been waiting nearby.
The lead attorney, Martin Shaw, explained that the company faced an immediate takeover. Halcyon Capital had quietly purchased enough shares to demand a board vote. Without the agreement, uncertainty over Ethan’s health could send the stock price falling.
“I am not ill,” Ethan said.
“Someone just tried to arrange otherwise,” Evelyn replied.
Martin avoided her eyes.
Detective Ortiz asked who requested the emergency clause. Martin said the instruction came through the chief financial officer’s office. Julian had represented it as Ethan’s personal request.
Nathan interrupted, warning that the company’s crisis was unrelated to the car. He recommended Ethan move to a secure location and sign remotely.
Milo had been silent, studying the agreement on the table. “What happens if he dies before the vote?”
Adults turned toward him.
Martin answered reluctantly. Julian would serve as acting chairman for ninety days. During that period, he could approve asset sales, restructure debt, and replace senior executives.
Milo looked at Ethan. “Then the broken brakes were not the whole plan. They were the first page.”
Ethan wanted to dismiss the observation as a child’s guess. He could not. The plan required three events: his death or incapacity, Julian’s automatic promotion, and a board meeting timed before anyone questioned the transition.
Evelyn searched the company calendar. Julian had scheduled a private vote that evening concerning the sale of Blackwood’s affordable housing division. The buyer was a newly formed company called Northstar Urban Partners.
Milo recognized the name Northstar. It appeared repeatedly in Rafael’s notebook.
“My dad said Northstar was a ghost,” he told them. “A company with no workers and a lot of doors.”
Ethan asked where the notebook was hidden.
Milo shook his head. “Not while he is here.”
He meant Nathan.
The security chief stepped forward. “That accusation is enough.”
Detective Ortiz ordered him to remain back. She requested his service weapon, company phone, and access badge pending a formal review. Nathan surrendered them with a controlled smile.
Then the mansion lights went out.
The library fell into darkness. Evelyn reached for Ethan. A window shattered in the hallway. By the time emergency lights flickered on, the chair beside Milo was empty.
Ethan ran into the corridor. The rear service door stood open, rain blowing across the marble floor.
On the ground lay Milo’s metal identification tag.
Nathan was still inside the library under the detective’s watch.
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Someone else had taken the boy.
And whoever it was knew he possessed the only surviving map to Rafael Reyes’s secret.
