Chapter 12 - THE EMPLOYEES
Payroll went out.
That mattered more than the arrest video.
The video was everywhere anyway.
Julian leaving his townhouse in handcuffs.
Camilla arrested later that afternoon.
James charged.
Marcus Cole charged.
Nina received a cooperation deal.
Eight hundred employees still needed a company on Monday.
Aurelia was bleeding.
Customers were nervous.
Two lenders threatened default.
Three senior executives resigned.
One took a stapler.
I only know because facilities emailed me.
“Do we bill him?”
“No.”
Small absurd things survive disasters.
I appointed an interim president.
Not myself.
That surprised the press.
A reporter shouted.
“Why not take the title?”
“Because ownership and management are different jobs.”
She looked disappointed.
We hired Denise Hart.
Forty-eight.
Operations chief.
No scandals.
No charisma cult.
She started by walking the factory floor.
She wore ugly shoes.
I liked her immediately.
Then a customer canceled a $40 million contract.
Stock value dropped.
Employees panicked.
Julian’s supporters called it proof I had destroyed Aurelia.
For one ugly week, I wondered if they were right.
Then Denise found a hidden product line.
A cybersecurity platform Julian had shelved because it was not flashy enough.
Engineering had kept it alive unofficially.
It worked.
Better than expected.
A government integrator wanted it.
We had a chance to replace part of the lost contract.
But the product lead refused to stay.
His name was Theo Park.
He had worked under Julian.
Julian humiliated him for years.
I asked Theo to meet.
He said.
“No offense, but you’re another rich person with a plan.”
Fair.
I said.
“Okay.”
He waited.
“That’s it?”
“What do you want me to say?”
“Convince me.”
“I can’t.”
He frowned.
“I can pay you.”
“That’s not the same thing.”
He laughed.
Finally.
Then I said.
“Stay three months.”
“Build the team your way.”
“If we interfere, leave.”
Theo agreed.
The product saved 230 jobs.
Not all.
We still cut 61 positions.
I hated signing those papers.
No triumph.
No villain speech.
Just names.
That night, Julian called from detention.
Collect.
I answered.
Bad idea.
“Audrey.”
His voice sounded smaller.
“What?”
“You’re firing people.”
“Yes.”
“I would’ve saved them.”
I closed my eyes.
“You stole from the company.”
“I made mistakes.”
“You built fake vendors.”
“I was under pressure.”
“You forged my guarantee.”
Silence.
Then.
“You always had money.”
There it was.
The deepest excuse.
I could afford to be harmed.
I hung up.
The next morning, the lender enforcing the fake guarantee withdrew its claim.
Their internal review found their own officer had accepted payments from Marcus.
The twenty-five million trap collapsed.
Then divorce papers arrived.
May you like
Julian asked for half of Northstar.
