Chapter 5 - Blood, Gold, and Irony
I walked slowly to the head of the table, pulling out the plush leather chair and sitting down. I leaned back, clasping my hands together, looking directly at my father and brother.
"Hello, Dad. Hello, Declan," I said, my voice calm, smooth, and utterly devoid of warmth. "I see you're pitching for the state logistics subcontract. The one worth three million dollars."
Thaddius swallowed hard, his face cycling through shades of red and purple. "Arthur... how... how did you..."
"It doesn't matter how," I interrupted, gesturing to the folders in front of them. "What matters is the quality of your proposal. Let's see it."
Declan, trying to salvage his pride, frantically opened his folder. "Arthur—I mean, Mr. Chairman—our firm has designed a highly efficient, cost-effective route that will save Vance Global hundreds of thousands—"
"Save us money by cutting corners?" I looked over at the Apex Medical CEO. "I looked over your proposal last night, Declan. You planned on using non-refrigerated trucks for temperature-sensitive medical supplies, including asthma medications, to save on fuel costs. Is that correct?"
Declan turned pale. "Well... the margin of error is—"
"The margin of error is a child's life," I said, slamming my hand down on the table. The sharp crack made both of them flinch. "I know how you operate, Declan. You take the money, pocket the profit, and leave others to deal with the disaster. Just like you took fifty thousand dollars of our parents' money while I was paying rent to sleep on concrete."
"Arthur, please," Thaddius stammered, his proud demeanor completely shattered. He looked around the room at the other board members, who were watching the drama unfold with wide eyes. "We are family. We can work this out. Your mother and I... we were just trying to teach you tough love. We wanted you to stand on your own two feet!"
"Tough love?" I let out a cold, dry laugh. "You ripped up my daughter's prescription. She was gasping for air, and you tore her medicine to pieces and threw it at my feet. You told me I was worthless and gave me an hour to get out."
The boardroom fell into a dead, horrified silence. The CEO of Apex Medical looked at Thaddius with utter disgust.
"I am officially rejecting the proposal from Thaddius & Sons," I announced, looking at the secretary. "And furthermore, Vance Global is invoking the exclusivity clause in our contract with Apex Medical. We will not ship any products for Apex if they associate, subcontract, or do business with Thaddius & Sons or any entity owned by Declan Pendelton."
"You can't do this!" Declan screamed, jumping to his feet. "You're ruining us!"
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"I'm not ruining you, Declan," I said softly, looking him dead in the eye. "You did that to yourselves. Security, please escort these gentlemen out. They are trespassing."
Four burly security guards entered the room, grabbing Thaddius and Declan by the arms and dragging them out of the boardroom as they pleaded and shouted.
