The news of Evelyn Sterling's arrest spread like wildfire through the city's business elite. By nine o'clock the following morning, police vehicles and news vans lined the driveway outside the Sterling Global headquarters in downtown Chicago.
Inside the grand executive boardroom on the top floor, twelve senior board members sat surrounding a long mahogany table, their faces filled with shock and anxiety.
At the head of the table sat Richard, dressed in a sharp black suit. Beside him sat Lily, wearing a simple blue dress with a soft bandage covering the singed spot near her scalp. Elena stood quietly behind Lily's chair, dressed in a neat dark suit.
Board Member Miller: Richard, this is unbelievable. The press is claiming Evelyn was arrested for murder and child abuse inside your mansion!
Richard: The press is telling the exact truth, Miller.
Board Member Miller: But what about the corporate shares she held as proxy for Lily's trust?
Richard: Every single share she attempted to control was obtained through forged notary stamps and illegal wire transfers.
The heavy boardroom doors pushed open, and Officer Davis walked into the room, escorting Evelyn in handcuffs. She wore a bright orange state corrections jumpsuit, her hands pinned to a leather waist belt, her face pale and exhausted.
Beside her walked Dr. Harrison, the family physician, who was also handcuffed and accompanied by a federal agent.
Evelyn: Miller! Tell these officers that I am the legitimate proxy for the Sterling estate!
Board Member Miller: Keep your voice down, Evelyn! You brought federal agents into our boardroom!
Officer Davis: Ladies and gentlemen of the board, Dr. Harrison gave a full digital confession two hours ago during his interrogation.
Dr. Harrison: I'm sorry, Evelyn... I couldn't lie to the federal prosecutors. They showed me the bank transfer logs from your offshore account.
Evelyn: You coward! You promised me those records were encrypted!
Dr. Harrison: They found the toxicology reports from Sarah's original blood work, Evelyn. It's over!
The board members gasped loudly, several of them standing up from their leather chairs in utter disgust.
Board Member Davis: My God... you actually poisoned Sarah Sterling?
Richard: She poisoned my wife, she attempted to poison my tea, and yesterday she pressed a hot straightener onto my seven-year-old daughter's head to intimidate her.
Evelyn: I was trying to secure the voting control for our merger!
Richard: You were trying to steal fifty million dollars for yourself, Evelyn.
Richard pulled a thick legal document from his briefcase, sliding it across the polished mahogany table toward Board Member Miller.
Richard: This is the court order signed by Judge Harrison twenty minutes ago. Full legal proxy over Lily's trust fund is permanently restored to me as her father.
Board Member Miller: Unanimously accepted, Richard. Evelyn Sterling is stripped of all corporate titles and voting rights effective immediately.
Evelyn thrashed against her waist belt, screaming hysterically as Officer Davis turned her toward the boardroom exit doors.
Evelyn: You can't take my shares! I am a Sterling! I deserve half of this empire!
Richard: You deserve a life sentence in a federal penitentiary, Evelyn. And that is exactly where you are going.