The Bell Ceremony

Chapter 4 The Illusions Shattered

Sebastian Cross and I were reviewing the final terms of our new fund in a private dining room at Le Ciel. The room was quiet enough to hear silverware touch china. City lights filled the panoramic window while he marked the final clause and handed the page back to me.

The oak door hit the wall before I could answer.

Elias stood in the doorway, breathing hard, with rain in his hair. A dark blue velvet box was clenched in his hand.

He walked past Sebastian and threw the box onto the table. It slid across the white cloth and stopped beside my plate. “Enough, Serena. I bought you a gift. End this tantrum and come home.”

He stayed standing, waiting for me to open it.

I left the box closed. “Is it a larger version of Lily's platinum bracelet? The one you bought for her three-month work anniversary? Even your apologies are repeating themselves.”

Elias glanced at the box, then at me. His prepared speech had apparently ended there.

Sebastian leaned back and took another sip of wine.

Elias planted both hands on the table. “I made you! You were a charity case writing code in a rundown apartment. A press release doesn't scare me. I own you, Serena. Everything you have came from me.”

He had repeated that story so often that he no longer checked whether it matched the paperwork.

I took one document from my leather portfolio and slid it across the table. “Read the first page.” It was Thorne Tech's original seed funding agreement from three years ago. “Your company began with my money.”

His eyes moved across the first paragraph, then returned to the amount.

“Three years ago, your startup was one week from bankruptcy. An anonymous investor wired you fifty million dollars. I made that transfer.”

He pulled the agreement closer and checked the date.

I tapped the Key-Person Provision. “The investment and interest depend on the primary benefactor's continued involvement. That's me. I formally severed my connection on the night of the IPO, so the clause took effect. The company assets will be frozen and liquidated to repay the investment.”

Elias read the clause again. The restaurant staff had gone quiet outside the open door.

“After liquidation, the company still owes the balance. You're bankrupt, Elias.”

His finger stopped at the signature he had never seen before. Below it, the paper carried a gold embossed seal.

The Sterling family crest.

Elias dropped into the chair beside the table. The velvet jewelry box remained unopened near my plate.

He looked from the crest to my name on the signature line.

Then he read the Key-Person Provision for a third time.