Chapter 7 - THE BOARDROOM TRAP
Victor Lang had made one mistake.
He thought Maya wanted money.
People like Victor understood ambition only when it resembled their own.
Power.
Control.
Ownership.
That made Maya difficult for him to predict.
Three days after Daniel’s suspension, Maya publicly announced she was resigning from Sterling Advanced Systems.
The media exploded.
Victor contacted her within six hours.
His offer was staggering.
Twenty million dollars immediately.
Another eighty million after she delivered the Carter verification sequence.
Exactly one hundred million.
Maya stared at the message.
Daniel noticed the number.
“He has a sense of humor.”
“So do I.”
Daniel frowned.
“What are you planning?”
“To accept.”
“No.”
“Daniel—”
“Absolutely not.”
“You don't get to order me around.”
“When your plan involves meeting a man who kidnapped Marcus, I’m making an exception.”
Maya leaned forward.
“We need him to admit what he did.”
“Police can investigate.”
“They need evidence.”
“We'll find another way.”
“Your shareholders vote tomorrow.”
Daniel went silent.
Victor had organized a board vote that would permanently remove Daniel and approve Vantage’s acquisition offer.
They had less than twenty-four hours.
Maya’s plan was simple.
And dangerous.
She would meet Victor.
Daniel hated every part of it.
But eventually he agreed under one condition.
Maya would wear a concealed transmitter.
The meeting occurred at the Grand Meridian.
The same hotel where everything had started.
Victor chose a private dining room.
Maya arrived alone.
He stood when she entered.
At sixty-two, Victor looked more like a distinguished professor than a corporate saboteur.
“You remind me of Samuel.”
Maya’s expression hardened.
“You knew my father.”
“Very well.”
“Did you kill him?”
Victor’s face changed.
“No.”
Maya watched carefully.
For the first time, she believed him.
“Your father died in an accident,” Victor said. “But his death made Arthur sentimental. He buried the greatest invention we had ever created.”
“Because it was dangerous.”
“Everything powerful is dangerous.”
Victor slid a contract across the table.
“One hundred million dollars.”
Maya did not touch it.
“I want something else.”
“What?”
“A laboratory.”
Victor smiled.
“Done.”
“My own team.”
“Done.”
“Complete authority over Orpheus.”
His smile weakened.
“That isn't negotiable.”
“There it is.”
“What?”
“The reason my father didn't trust you.”
Victor leaned back.
Maya continued.
“You don't want innovation. You want control.”
Victor’s eyes became cold.
“You're playing a dangerous game.”
“So are you.”
He reached into his pocket.
Maya tensed.
Victor placed a small electronic device on the table.
Her transmitter immediately died.
“You really thought I wouldn't check?”
The door opened.
Two men entered.
Maya’s heart hammered.
Victor leaned closer.
“Give me the sequence.”
“No.”
“Then your brother pays for your principles.”
Maya’s face drained.
Victor showed her a live image.
Ethan leaving school.
A black SUV was parked across the street.
Maya stood.
Victor smiled.
Then every light in the private dining room went out.
The emergency alarm sounded.
Victor swore.
The doors burst open.
Federal agents entered.
Daniel followed behind them.
Victor stared at Maya.
“You planned this.”
Maya looked at the electronic jammer.
“No.”
She smiled faintly.
“My brother did.”
Ethan had realized any transmitter could be blocked.
So he had written a tiny program into Maya’s smartwatch that sent a distress signal if communication stopped unexpectedly.
The moment Victor activated his jammer, Ethan’s program alerted Daniel.
Victor was arrested.
But his expression remained strangely calm.
As agents handcuffed him, he looked at Daniel.
“You think this ends with me?”
Daniel said nothing.
Victor smiled.
“Check your prototype.”
May you like
Across Manhattan, alarms began sounding inside Sterling headquarters.
Orpheus had activated itself.
