My hand shakes so violently I can barely hold the pen.
I look at the signature line.Authorized Officer.
I think of my mother. I think of how proud she was the day she put that sign on the building.
Forgive me, Mom.
I lower the pen. The nib scratches against the page as I write my name.
Helena Blackwood.
It isn’t a signature. It’s a surrender.
I drop the pen.
Konstantin snatches the paper away instantly. He checks the signature and smiles.
"Perfect," he says.
He caps the pen, slips it into his breast pocket, and steps back, finally opening the cage.
"Welcome to the family, Ms. Director," he says.
Director.
The word tastes like poison.
He tucks the folder under his arm as I slump in the chair, my head in my hands.
It's over. He has the company.
"Oh," Konstantin says. He stops at the door. "One more thing."
I look up, my eyes stinging with tears. "What? You have everything."
"Not everything," he says.
He taps the leather folder under his arm.
"This gives me the ships," he says softly. "But a ship is useless without a captain. You still have work to do,."
"I did what you asked," I whisper. "I signed."
"You signed a piece of paper," he says. "Tomorrow, the real work begins. You’ll learn that the shipping business doesn’t end with moving crates. It’s about moving opportunities."
He leaves the threat hanging in the air. I don't know what he means, but the intensity in his eyes sends a shiver down my spine.
He checks his watch.
"But that’s for tomorrow. Tonight, we celebrate."
"Celebrate?"
"The merger," he says, his lips curving into a smirk. "I’ve reserved a table. A private dinner in the penthouse."
He opens the door.
"Get cleaned up. The driver will be waiting downstairs to take you back to the penthouse to change."
