Chapter 16 - The Firm That Stayed Quiet
The rival firm was Norbridge Advisory.
One of Delaney’s messages showed he had contacted a Norbridge recruiter weeks earlier, hinting he could bring a major account with him if he moved firms.
The recruiter never accepted stolen documents.
But he also never reported that Delaney was offering confidential information.
That was enough for Ethan and me.
We removed Norbridge from consideration.
“Two firms gone in forty-eight hours,” Ethan said.
“Better now than after they have our money.”
The committee restarted the search with outside counsel reviewing the process.
I expected Lauren to disappear from my life.
Instead, Ava called me.
“I wanted you to know I resigned.”
“From Pierce?”
“Yes.”
“Did anyone pressure you?”
“No. Charles asked me to stay. I just need somewhere new.”
I understood.
She had spent years being told that survival required silence.
“What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know.”
I thought about Jenna on the restaurant floor. Nicole holding that old termination letter. Myself at seventeen behind a grocery register.
Then an idea formed.
Not a revenge idea.
A useful one.
Our restaurant group had been planning a paid leadership program for hourly employees moving into management. We also needed a financial planning partner to teach basic investing, benefits, and budgeting to staff.
“Ava, would you be interested in consulting?”
She laughed nervously. “For you?”
“For the employees. Different job.”
There was a long silence.
“I’d like that.”
Two weeks later, the board approved a pilot program.
Then my communications director walked into my office holding her phone.
“You should see this.”
A video had gone viral.
It showed Lauren pouring wine on me.
Someone had leaked the restaurant footage.
And the caption said:
May you like
BILLIONAIRE’S WIFE DESTROYS WAITRESS’S CAREER AFTER OLD HIGH SCHOOL FEUD.
The story had been twisted again.
