Chapter 9
Andrew opened his mouth to offer another fabricated defense, but the detectives stepped forward and placed his hands behind his damp gray coat.
As the handcuffs clicked shut around Andrew’s wrists, Emma paused her drawing for a moment, watching the disgraced executive being led down the corridor.
"Is that the man who made a bad choice?" Emma asked Daniel quietly, holding her colored pencil suspended over the bright white paper.
"Yes, baby," Daniel answered softly, kneeling down beside her table. "He chose something selfish, and now the truth is taking care of it."
Emma nodded thoughtfully, then returned to coloring her drawing, adding a bright golden star above the roof of a small paper chimney.
Victoria stood by the window for a long while, looking down at the city skyline as the winter storm began to clear away.
She turned back toward the room, her gaze resting warmly upon Daniel and the little girl whose laughter now filled the quiet corporate space.
"Daniel, please sit down with me for a minute," Victoria requested, gesturing to the two leather armchairs near the warm interior fireplace.
Daniel walked over and took a seat, feeling the immense weight of the past year slowly lifting off his tired, rounded shoulders.
"The company owes you far more than back wages for the unpaid overtime you endured under Mark Reynolds," Victoria began with earnest sincerity.
"I had our human resources division run an exhaustive audit of your timesheets, performance reviews, and original technical contributions for the past three years."
"Every single technical innovation that made the Benton account viable was created solely by your intellect and your perseverance, Daniel," Victoria stated clearly.
Daniel lowered his eyes modestly. "I was only doing the job I was hired to do, Ms. Hayes. I just wanted to provide."
"You did the work of an entire department while being systematically diminished and emotionally drained by corrupt men who took all the credit," she countered.
"Starting tomorrow morning, the Northstar Board of Directors will confirm your promotion to Director of Systems Architecture and Integrity," Victoria announced smoothly.
Chapter 6
Daniel looked up sharply, completely stunned by the magnitude of her statement, his breath catching once more in his throat.
"Director?" Daniel whispered, his voice trembling with disbelief. "Ms. Hayes, I don't have an executive pedigree. I'm just a working father."
"You have something far rarer than pedigree, Daniel," Victoria said, leaning forward with undeniable conviction shining in her clear eyes.