Chapter 16 - The Morning After The Wedding
The morning after my wedding, I woke before sunrise.
For several seconds, I didn't remember where I was.
Then I saw the white dress hanging beside the window.
My wedding dress.
I smiled.
Yesterday, I had stood beneath crossed ceremonial sabers beside Caleb, surrounded by officers who had watched me survive the worst year of my life.
Today, I was no longer simply Captain Nora Vance.
I was Nora Miller.
But before I could enjoy that thought, my secure phone vibrated.
One message.
URGENT — VANCE DEFENSE SYSTEMS BOARD REQUESTS YOUR PRESENCE.
I stared at the screen.
Caleb woke beside me.
“What happened?”
“The board.”
He sat up.
“Already?”
“I guess billion-dollar companies don't care that I got married yesterday.”
He smiled.
“Apparently not.”
I dressed quickly.
Two hours later, I walked into the executive conference room of Vance Defense Systems.
Seven directors were waiting.
The company's acting counsel stood at the head of the table.
He looked nervous.
“What happened?”
He pushed a folder toward me.
“We found something during the forensic transition.”
I opened it.
Inside were contracts.
Old contracts.
Some dated years before my father's death.
My eyes stopped on one name.
Atlas Strategic Technologies.
“What is this?”
The counsel swallowed.
“A subcontracting company.”
“Owned by whom?”
He hesitated.
“A holding company registered in Delaware.”
“That doesn't answer my question.”
He slid another document toward me.
The beneficial ownership records were incomplete.
But one signature appeared repeatedly.
A former executive named Martin Hale.
I remembered the name.
My father had once trusted him.
“Where is Hale now?”
“Retired.”
“Then why are we looking at him?”
The counsel lowered his voice.
“Because one of the contracts transferred technology from Vance Defense Systems to Atlas at a price significantly below market value.”
I stared at the page.
“How much?”
“Approximately forty-two million dollars over four years.”
My chest tightened.
“Was my father involved?”
“We don't know.”
That answer frightened me more than a clear accusation.
I closed the folder.
“Find out.”
The chairman looked at me.
“Nora, this could reopen questions about your father's legacy.”
I looked at him.
“If there are questions about my father, we answer them.”
Caleb stood beside me.
He didn't speak.
He didn't need to.
The life I had dreamed of beginning after the wedding had already changed.
But perhaps that was what leadership really meant.
Not choosing when the difficult chapters arrived.
May you like
Choosing what to do when they did.
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