Chapter 9 - The Financial Guillotine
"I bought that watch with my own money, Adam," Claire stated softly, her voice echoing perfectly through the silent boardroom. "It was an eighty-thousand-dollar vintage piece. But you were too busy laughing to notice."
"Claire..." Adam choked out, his voice a breathless, pathetic squeak. "You're... you're Vanguard Holdings?"
"When you cut me out of Dad's will, I didn't cry," Claire explained clinically, looking down at the man who had humiliated her. "I took my tiny severance and built my own real estate firm. And when you ran Dad's legacy into the ground two years later, I quietly bought your debt to keep this family from going bankrupt."
Vanessa began to hyperventilate in the corner, realizing her unlimited credit cards were entirely gone.
"I let you pretend you were a billionaire," Claire whispered, her eyes devoid of any human mercy. "I let you mock me. I gave you every single opportunity to be a decent brother. But last night, you proved exactly what you are."
"Claire, I'm sorry!" Adam sobbed wildly, crawling toward her designer shoes. "It was a joke! I was just stressed! Please, I'm your brother! We can run this together!"
May you like
"We aren't partners," Claire corrected ruthlessly. "You are terminated. Effective immediately. My forensic accountants have already forwarded your fraudulent corporate expense reports to the SEC. You will be facing federal embezzlement charges by Friday."
👉 The toxic family screamed for mercy, but Claire was about to take out the trash in front of everyone.
