Chapter 5 - The Chairman's Call
The phone connected instantly. A sharp, professional voice echoed clearly from the speaker, cutting through the tense silence of the dining room.
"Chairman Mercer! Thank God you answered. The emergency board meeting is halting. We are waiting for your executive command regarding the embezzlement reports."
Richard’s face completely drained of color. His jaw dropped open as he stared at the smartphone, his mind scrambling to process the words he had just heard.
Chairman Mercer?
Ethan leaned forward, his dark eyes locking onto Richard’s terrified face with unyielding power.
"Marcus, initiate the immediate termination of General Manager Richard Vance," Ethan commanded smoothly into the phone. "And deploy the federal forensic auditors to the Bellweather Grill within the next ten minutes. We are seizing the restaurant ledgers."
"Understood, Chairman. Auditors are en route," the voice replied crisply before the line disconnected.
The hostess let out a high-pitched gasp, clapping her hands over her mouth as she realized she had just denied entry to the billionaire owner of the entire Mercer Global conglomerate.
Richard's knees buckled. He grabbed the edge of the table to keep from collapsing onto the floorboards.
"Mr. Mercer... sir!" Richard stammered, his voice cracking into a pathetic, high-pitched whimper. "This is a misunderstanding! I didn't recognize you without your security detail! Please, you can't fire me!"
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"I'm not just firing you, Richard," Ethan replied coldly. "I'm auditing you."
👉 Read Part 6 to discover the massive fraud Richard had been hiding.
