Then Malcolm looked directly at me.
“Please welcome Northstar’s founder and Aurelia’s new majority owner, Ms. Audrey Vance.”
I placed my glass on the table and walked toward the stage.
Behind me, someone gasped. Camilla’s hand fell from Julian’s arm.
My husband stopped breathing.
Part 2
Every step toward the stage carried me farther from the woman Julian thought he had trained me to become.
Malcolm offered his hand. The applause began uncertainly, then gathered force as employees realized the quiet wife their future president had just humiliated was the person who had saved their company. I faced the ballroom beneath the bright lights. Julian looked gray. Camilla’s red gown no longer made her look powerful; it made her impossible to overlook.
“You own Northstar?” Julian shouted.
Malcolm’s expression hardened. “Mr. Vance, you will wait.”
I took the microphone. “My mother founded Northstar twenty-seven years ago. When she became ill, I ran its restructuring portfolio under my maiden name. Julian knew I worked in finance. He simply never considered my work important enough to understand.”
A few people laughed. Julian did not.
I explained that Northstar had begun evaluating Aurelia after its lenders threatened liquidation. The company possessed excellent engineers, valuable patents, and loyal employees. What it lacked was honest executive control.
Julian moved toward the stage. Security quietly closed the aisle.
