Velvet Secrets

Chapter 16

The shareholder meeting began at 9:00 a.m.

Closed doors. Legal teams. Silent tension thick enough to choke on.

Lila wasn’t allowed inside.

Alexander was.

Barely.

The board sat like a tribunal.

At the far end of the table—

Seraphina.

Not as a guest.

As an observer representing Vale capital interests.

Calculated.

Poised.

Deadly calm.

The Betrayal

The votes began.

One by one.

Percentages climbing across the digital screen.

Alexander watched without expression.

Then—

Marcus cleared his throat.

“I am voting in favor of leadership transition.”

The words echoed.

Alexander’s head turned slowly.

“You’re what?”

Marcus didn’t look at him.

“This is bigger than loyalty.”

The chairman nodded approvingly.

“With Marcus Hale’s proxy shares included,” he said smoothly, “the majority shifts.”

Alexander understood immediately.

Marcus had consolidated smaller shareholders quietly.

Promised stability.

Promised Vale backing.

Promised control.

“You were positioning against me,” Alexander said quietly.

“I was protecting the company.”

The betrayal wasn’t emotional.

It was strategic.

Which made it worse.

The final percentage locked in.

51%.

Against him.

The chairman folded his hands.

“Effective immediately, Alexander Kane is removed as CEO of Kane Enterprises.”

Just like that.

The empire exhaled him.

Outside — The Second Blow

Before Alexander could even leave the building—

Phones buzzed across the city.

A new headline detonated.

VALE HEIRESS LINKED TO PAST FINANCIAL SCANDAL.

The article was detailed.

Dated three years prior.

A failed tech investment fund tied to Seraphina’s oversight.

Investor losses quietly settled out of court.

Non-disclosure agreements.

Buried records.

Except now—

They weren’t buried.

Inside the boardroom, screens lit up.

The chairman’s face drained.

Seraphina didn’t move.

But her fingers tightened slightly on the table.

“This is misinformation,” she said evenly.

Alexander’s eyes sharpened.

“I didn’t leak that.”

Marcus looked between them.

“If this spreads before markets close—”

“It will,” Seraphina interrupted coolly. “Because it was timed.”

And suddenly—

The vote didn’t look so stable anymore.

The Shocking Twist

The doors opened.

Unexpectedly.

A voice spoke from the entrance.

“I believe my vote hasn’t been counted.”

Every head turned.

Standing there—

Richard Kane.

Alexander’s estranged father.

Majority silent shareholder.

A man who hadn’t stepped into company affairs in five years.

The room went still.

The chairman blinked. “Mr. Kane, you transferred your voting rights to the board.”

Richard walked in slowly.

“I revoked that proxy this morning.”

Gasps.

Legal counsel scrambled through documents.

“It’s valid,” one attorney confirmed quietly.

Richard’s gaze shifted to his son.

“You made a mistake today,” he said bluntly. “But you made it with conviction.”

Then to the board:

“My shares stand with Alexander.”

The percentage recalculated.

51% flipped.

53% in favor.

Alexander reinstated.

The room shifted again.

Power snapping back into place like a steel trap.

Marcus went pale.

The chairman leaned back slowly.

Seraphina’s composure cracked—just slightly.

Because this—

She had not anticipated.

Aftermath

The meeting adjourned in chaos.

Seraphina stood gracefully.

“This isn’t over,” she said quietly to Alexander.

“No,” he agreed. “It isn’t.”

She stepped closer, voice low enough for only him to hear.

“You think exposing my past weakens me?”

Her eyes sharpened.

“It only reminds me how far I’m willing to go.”

Then she walked out.

Head high.

But the ground beneath her had shifted.

Later — Lila

Alexander arrived at her apartment that night.

Not suspended.

Not defeated.

But changed.

“You’re still CEO,” she whispered.

“Yes.”

“But Marcus—”

“Is no longer CFO.”

A pause.

“And Seraphina?”

He stepped closer.

“She’s wounded.”

Lila searched his face.

“And you?”

He exhaled slowly.

“I just declared war.”

Outside, the city buzzed with scandal.

Boardroom betrayal.

Family power plays.

Resurfaced secrets.

And beneath it all—

A truth emerging:

Seraphina Vale wasn’t just fighting for marriage.

She was fighting for control.

And now—

So was Alexander.