Chapter 11 - The Man Behind the Money
By sunrise, Robert Sterling knew.
I knew because my hotel reservation disappeared.
My corporate credit facility was frozen.
Two journalists emailed questions about alleged insider trading.
And Cross Harbor Capital's general counsel called me at 6:07 a.m.
"Ava, somebody dumped a file to the press. It says you manipulated Whitmore stock before the tender offer."
"It's false."
"I know. But it looks real."
I sat alone on VALOR's aft deck, watching the sky turn pink over the marina.
This was how it started with my father.
Not with one dramatic explosion.
With documents.
Calls not returned.
Banks suddenly nervous.
Friends suddenly unavailable.
Reputation collapsing faster than facts could catch up.
Evan sat beside me.
"You're thinking about him."
"I'm thinking about how easy it is to destroy someone if you control the first story people hear."
He nodded.
"Then don't let Sterling go first."
At eight, we held an emergency board meeting onboard.
Richard resigned as chairman before I could demand it.
Celeste did not attend. She had given a statement to police and was under legal supervision at a nearby hotel.
When the meeting opened, I expected chaos.
Instead, Martin Cole slid a printed letter toward me.
"Sterling Capital has called the merger."
"Called it?"
"They want a vote today. They say Cross Harbor is unstable and Whitmore needs new leadership."
Evan took the letter.
His face changed.
"They're proposing an interim CEO."
I read the name.
Robert Sterling Jr.
Not the father.
The son.
The man I had dated for eleven months three years earlier.
The man who once asked me, casually, why I cared so much about my father's old company.
The man I had trusted enough to tell everything.
My phone rang.
His name appeared on the screen.
ROBERT JR.
May you like
I answered.
"Ava," he said warmly, "I think it's time we stop pretending this isn't personal."
