Thomas Keller, a senior board member with a talent for smiling while scheming, arrived two days after the accident. With him was Linda Shaw from finance. They offered no prayers, no softness.
“Tragic,” Thomas said lightly. “But we must think of the shareholders. If we don’t restructure immediately, the stock will suffer.”
Linda hesitated. “What exactly are you proposing?”
“Division of authority. Victoria centralized too much power. Frankly, it’s an opportunity. We’ll honor her ‘vision’ publicly, of course. The market loves a fallen legend.”
Rage surged inside her, but the monitor beside her bed stayed steady. They were burying her before she was gone.
Then the door opened again.
These steps were softer. Uneven.
It was Daniel Reed.
Daniel was her executive assistant—efficient, quiet, invisible when needed. A widower raising his daughter, Lily, alone. Victoria had hired him for competence, not sentiment. She knew his résumé better than she knew his life.
He pulled up a chair beside her bed.
“Ms. Hale… Victoria,” he whispered. “I don’t know if you can hear me, but I had to come.”
She expected worry about job security.