Chapter 4 - The Unraveling of an Empire
The silence in the boardroom was so profound you could hear the distant hum of the city traffic thirty-eight floors below. Roman stared at me as if I were a ghost, his mouth opening and closing soundlessly. The man who had walked out of our kitchen the night before, arrogant and untouchable, was suddenly drowning in the very trap he had meticulously constructed for me.
"Savannah..." Roman breathed out, his voice cracking. He took a hesitant step around the table toward me, his expression shifting into a desperate mask of pleading remorse. "Savannah, darling, what is this? You’re pregnant, you’re exhausted, someone has poisoned your mind—"
"Don't you dare touch me, Roman," I said, my voice cutting through the air like a razor blade. I stepped forward into the room, flanked by two armed federal agents who flanked the doorway. "You had your chance to be a husband last night. You chose to spend Christmas Eve with Claire Bennett at a rooftop lounge while your wife sat alone waiting for a man who didn't exist."
Arthur Vance slammed his fists onto the table, his face dark with fury. "Roman! Is this true? Did you misappropriate funds for a mistress while using company reserves as your personal piggy bank?"
"Arthur, listen to me, we can fix this—" Roman stammered, sweat beading on his forehead as he realized the board members were glaring at him with undiscovered disgust.
"There's nothing to fix, Mr. Carter," the federal banking representative stepped forward, snapping a pair of cold steel handcuffs onto the table. "You are under arrest for wire fraud, embezzlement, and corporate securities violations. Any assets tied to your name, including your primary residence, your personal bank accounts, and your shares in Carter Holdings, are hereby seized pending federal forfeiture proceedings."
Roman lunged forward, panic completely shattering his polished exterior. "You can't do this! I built this empire! I am Carter Holdings!"
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"No, Roman," I said, looking down at him with absolute, unyielding indifference. "You were just an employee. Carter Holdings belongs to my family trust. And as of this morning, my divorce attorneys have executed the default clause transferring every single voting share into my exclusive possession."
As the federal marshals stepped forward and secured the handcuffs around Roman’s wrists, his knees buckled slightly. He looked up at me with eyes full of sheer, unadulterated terror, realizing too late that the quiet woman he had underestimated had just stripped him of his wealth, his freedom, and his entire existence.
