He looks confused and a little like he’s seeing me for the first time. I’m not entirely sure that’s a good or bad thing.
He slams his hand against the table. “Enough!”
The room falls silent. He narrows his eyes on me. “You want to explain why you’re throwing away millions? Why you’re sabotaging a deal the entire board agreed to?”
“Because.” I hold his stare, unblinking. “Some things are worth more than profit.”
His expression barely shifts, but it’s enough.
“You have no say here. It’s my asset to do as I wish. These are my wishes.”
“With all due respect,” Matthew Bilson begins, his finger tapping on the table, “youexplicitly said you’d be sharing this asset with the company. You sold us the idea. Not to mention the prospects of securing real estate on Park Avenue and taking this company into another area of expertise.”
I look him square in the eye, ready with an answer. “I did promise those things, but as we know, deals sometimes fall through. This is one of them.”
“It can’t be as simple as that.” His nostrils flare. “Many of us had hopes in this new venture.”
They all nod their agreement.
“Do you think you can make me change my mind?” I challenge, raising my brows.
“I’m sure we could do something.”
“Try it, and I’m gone.”
The ripple of shock cascades around the room again, louder this time.
That threat was the ace up my sleeve. A test of my worth. People say you should never make the mistake of thinking you’re irreplaceable. I never have. But Iamirreplaceable.
I just never owned it. Until now.
Regardless of the scandal, I’ve more than made up for my mistakes and salvaged my name. My father may have put theGlobalin the company name, but I secured it. No one has been able to do the things I’ve done. And they all know it.
“Knox, let’s not venture down those paths,” Dad says, looking panicked. “Leaving this company shouldn’t even be an option in your mind.”
“I will if I must.”I’ll do it for her. For Isla. The more I speak, the more I realize how wrong I was to put her through this shit.
“Would this by any chance have anything to do with your wife?” Lila asks, staring down at me over her bone-rimmed glasses. “We assume she didn’t know about the demolition plans until the press leak.”
“That is correct.”
“But you married the girl for this very reason. That was the plan. If she has a problem with it now, it’s tough.”
I glance at my father and hope he can see what I’m seeing, what we’ve always seen.
Too much power in the hands of the wrong people. Dorian said it best months ago. Our father allows the board far too much authority.
I’ve always understood the value they bring to the empire, but there has to be a line. And I’m done letting them blur it.
I look away from him and back at Lila. It’s time to shut this down and put her and those against me in their places.
“First of all, we’re Vale Global, and I am Knox Vale. We can find property elsewhere. It may not be prime location on Park Avenueyet, but we can do it. There’s so much we can do. There’s so much I can do. Second, youwillrespect my wife.” The cuttingstare I give Lila is enough to redden her face and widen her eyes with fear. “Don’t youeverfucking dare tell me that if she has a problem with something, it’stough. Do that again, and you’re gone.”
My threats are not empty. Everyone with the surname of Vale in here has more voting rights than the rest of them. That’s how my grandfather set things up. As the eldest, I have nearly as much as my father, and I know my brothers would instantly have my back. It wouldn’t even matter if my father did or not.
Lila stiffens, her breath catching. “Apologies.”
“Yeah. I think so. And we’re done here.”
