- 37 minutes ago
The Emerald Heiress. Completed English dubbed
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Short filmTranscript
00:00my face in front of his entire family his mistress was wearing my mother's necklace
00:05and all i said was does anyone have a pen the blackwell family dining room went silent
00:1132 people sat around the long mahogany table derek's parents his uncles cousins and of course
00:18vanessa hale the woman currently hanging on my husband's arm like a designer accessory
00:23she was wearing the emerald necklace my late mother had left me the one i had kept locked in
00:30my bedroom safe derek blackwell my husband of five years stood at the head of the table with
00:37his jaw clenched did you hear me aurelia i want a divorce sign the papers i stared at the document
00:45in front of me standard terms no alimony no asset division just a clean exit as if five years of
00:52marriage could be erased like a typo she's probably in shock vanessa whispered loud enough for everyone
00:57to hear poor thing where will she even go derek's mother constance sipped her wine without looking
01:04at me it's for the best dear you were never really one of us i had married into the blackwell
01:09family
01:09when i was 22 fresh out of college no family left no connections derek had seemed kind back then
01:16gentle the kind of man who opened doors and remembered your coffee order i didn't know he'd
01:22been sleeping with vanessa for three of our five years together i didn't know his mother had hand
01:27picked vanessa as his real match from the start and they certainly didn't know who i actually was
01:32well derek crossed his arms are you gonna sign or just sit there i picked up the pen the room
01:38collectively held its breath not out of sympathy but anticipation they wanted me gone i signed my name
01:45in smooth unhurried strokes then i set the pen down and looked up at derek i'll have my lawyers
01:52finalize this by morning but the necklace on your girlfriend's neck belongs to me i'd like it back
01:57vanessa's hand flew to the emerald derek gave this to me it's mine now derek gave you something that was
02:03never his to give derek stepped forward his voice dropping don't make a scene aurelia just leave with
02:10whatever dignity you have left dignity i almost laughed i stood straightened my dress and looked
02:18at every single face around that table not one of them would meet my eyes thank you for dinner
02:24constance the roast was dry as always i walked toward the door behind me i heard vanessa giggle
02:31finally i thought she'd never leave then derek's voice low but clear make sure she doesn't take
02:39anything from the house i want her out by midnight i paused at the threshold oh derek one more thing
02:46what you might want to check the financial news tomorrow morning it's going to be a very interesting
02:51day for blackwell industries the door clicked shut behind me and not a single person at that table
02:58understood what i meant yes the door clicked shut behind me and not a single person at that table
03:16understood what i meant yes the night air hit my face as i stepped outside the blackwell estate
03:24my phone buzzed 12 missed calls from the same number i called back mrs grayson the voice on the
03:32other end was clipped professional we've been trying to reach you the board is waiting for your final
03:38conferation it's mr ashford now i corrected and yes proceed with the acquisition understood the blackwell
03:46industries takeover will be finalized at market open shall i notify the press not yet let them enjoy
03:54their last peaceful night i ended the call and stood in the driveway staring at the fleet of luxury
03:59cars parked outside porsches range rovers a bentley my car was parked at the far end a simple black
04:07sedan nothing flashy what the blackwells didn't know was that the nobody orphan they had mocked for
04:13five years was the sole heir to ashford capital the largest private equity firm on the east coast my
04:19father had built it from nothing when my parents died in a plane crash during my senior year of high
04:24school i had inherited everything the lawyers the board the billions all held in trust until i turned
04:3121 i had chosen to keep it hidden i wanted a normal life a real marriage someone who loved me
04:38for me
04:38not my net worth what a joke that turned out to be i had spent five years cooking dinner attending
04:44constance's insufferable garden parties and smiling while the blackwells treated me like the help
04:49all because i loved derek or rather i loved who i thought he was my phone buzzed again a text
04:58from an
04:58unknown number aurelia it's vanessa derek wanted me to remind you be out by midnight and leave the house
05:07keys on the counter thanks sweetheart i stared at the message then i typed back the house is in my
05:14name check the deed you have 48 hours to vacate i hit send silenced my phone and drove away tomorrow
05:23derek blackwell would wake up and discover that his wife his boring invisible powerless wife had just
05:30bought his family's entire company and she wasn't feeling merciful
05:40tomorrow derek blackwell would wake up and discover that his wife his boring invisible powerless wife had
05:47just bought his family's entire company and she wasn't feeling merciful
05:52by 9 a.m the next morning it was all over the financial news ashford capital combelt's hostile
05:59takeover of blackwell industries sources confirm new majority shareholder is former blackwell family
06:06member my phone had been ringing non-stop since 6 a.m i let it ring i was sitting in
06:12the corner office
06:13on the 40th floor of the ashford capital building in manhattan sipping coffee and reviewing the final
06:19acquisition documents my assistant leo knocked twice before entering mrs ashford the blackwell family's
06:27attorney has called seven times derek blackwell himself has called 14 times he paused and constance
06:33blackweck is in the lobby she's demanding to see you i set my coffee down constance is here already
06:40she arrived 20 minutes ago security is holding her at reception i leaned back in my chair send her up
06:47leo hesitated are you sure absolutely i want to see her face five minutes later constance blackwell
06:56stepped into my office she looked immaculate as always chanel suit pearl earrings not a hair out of place
07:03but her eyes were wild darting around the massive corner office as if she had walked into a trap
07:09aurelia her voice was strained
07:11what is this some kind of sick joke good morning constance please sit down
07:18she didn't sit you bought our company you the woman who couldn't even pick the right wine at dinner
07:26i always pick the right wine you just never had the palate to appreciate it this is fraud face reddened
07:33there's no way you have this kind of money who's backing you who put you up to this
07:39i slid a folder across the desk ashford capital founded by my father richard ashfield current net
07:45worth north of 12 billion sole heir me constance opened the folder as she read the colors slowly
07:54drained from her face this can't be right it's been verified by three independent auditors and the
08:01sec would you like their numbers her hands trembled she closed the folder and looked up at me with an
08:07expression i had never seen on her face before fear what do you want aurelia i smiled i want my
08:14mother's necklace back and i want a formal public apology from your family and if we refuse i tilted
08:21my head then i'll liquidate blackwell industries by friday every asset every property every trust fund
08:28your family depends on i paused including derrick's conaltons gripped the armrest of her chair
08:36you wouldn't constance you spent five years telling me i was nothing that i should be grateful your son
08:42even looked at me i leaned forward do i look like i'm bluffing the silence that followed was deafening
08:51finally constance stood her composure barely intact i'll speak with the family you have until 5 p.m.
08:57today she turned to leave then stopped at the door without looking back she asked quietly did you ever
09:03actually love my son the question caught me off guard i paused then answered honestly more than he deserved
09:11the door closed behind her i echo hailed slowly my calm exterior cracking just slightly then leo's voice
09:20came through the intercom mrs ashfield there's one more visitor he doesn't have an appointment but he
09:25says it's urgent who is it derrick blackwell he's on his way up and ma'am leo's voice dropped he's
09:33not
09:33alone he brought vanessa and she's still wearing your mother's necklace
09:44the elevator doors opened and derrick walked in like he still owned the world his jaw was set his
09:50shoulders squared every inch of him radiating the arrogance i had once mistaken for confidence
09:55vanessa trailed behind him in a red dress that probably cost more than most people's rent
10:00my mother's emerald glittering against her collarbone like a stolen crown they both stopped
10:05cold when they saw the name on my office door aurelia ashford ceo ashford capital derrick's mask
10:12tin he recovered shoving his hands into his pockets with forced casualness
10:19so it's true his voice was flat you've been hiding this the entire time i didn't stand didn't offer them
10:26a seat hiding implies i owed you the truth i didn't vanessa clutched derrick's arm her eyes sweeping the
10:34corner office the floor to ceiling windows overlooking manhattan the original bosque out on the wall
10:39the quiet unmistakable scent of real power for the first time she looked unsure of herself
10:44derrick pulled out a chair without being invited and sat across from me
10:47let's cut the theatrics aurelia you're angry i get it but buying my family's company that's not justice
10:56that's revenge and throwing divorce papers at my face in front of your entire family while your
11:03mistress wore my dead mother's jewelry what was that rowan's he flinched good here's what's going to
11:09happen derrick i opened a leather portfolio on my desk i now hold 62 percent of blackwell industries
11:15that makes me the majority shareholder as of this morning i've frozen all executive accounts pending a full
11:23financial audit derrick's face went white you froze our accounts your company's accounts
11:29they're my company's accounts now vanessa stepped forward you can't do this derrick's family built
11:36that company over three generations and your boyfriend nearly bankrupted it in two years i pulled
11:44out a financial report and placed it on the desk blackwell industries has been hemorrhaging money since
11:49derrick took over as coo exposed derivatives positions honorized loans a 12 million dollar
11:55marketing expense that traces directly to a villa in the south of france i looked at vanessa your villa
12:01i believe vanessa's mouth opened then closed derrick shot to his feet that's confidential financial
12:08data how did you i own the company derrick nothing is confidential from me the room went very still
12:18derrick stared at me as if seeing me for the first time not the quiet wife who folded his laundry
12:23and
12:24tolerated his mother's insults not the woman he had so easily discarded his voice was hoarse what do
12:30you want i already told your mother the necklace a public apology and i want vanessa out of every
12:37property connected to blackwell industries including the villa vanessa let out a sharp laugh
12:43you're delusional derrick tell her shut up vanessa she recorded as if she'd been slapped
12:51derrick's hands were shaking he pressed them flat against the desk leaning forward
12:56and if i agree to all of that you'll return control of the company
13:02i studied him for a long moment no his face crumbled the company stays with me consider it the alimony
13:10you
13:10didn't think i deserved i closed the portfolio you have until five o'clock after that i begin
13:16liquidation proceedings aurelia derrick looked like a man watching his house five years
13:23doesn't that mean anything to you i held his gaze without blinking it meant everything to me derrick
13:30that's why this hurts you so much because you're only now realizing it meant nothing to you
13:36he had no response i pressed the intercom leo please escort mr blackwell and his guest to the
13:44elevator derrick said slowly mechanically he turned i thought this isn't over i smiled for you it was
13:52over the moment you handed me that pen the door closed i sat in silence for exactly 10 seconds then
13:58leo's voice returned ashford i have an update derrick's car is still in the parking garage but vanessa just
14:04got into a separate vehicle a black mercedes it's registered to someone named roman corsetti
14:10my hand froze on the desk roman corsetti the one name in this city i had spent five years
14:16avoiding ems ashford are you all right i let out a slow breath leo pull everything we have on corsetti
14:24holdings every subsidiary every board member every transaction in the last six months may i ask why
14:30because roman corsetti was the only man alive who knew exactly who i was before i became aurelia
14:35ashford before the inheritance before the walls i had built around myself and if vanessa was connected
14:42to him this wasn't just a messy divorce anymore just do it and leo yes cancel my afternoon
14:49something tells me it's about to get a lot more complicated
14:57by noon leo had assembled a full dossier on corsetti holdings i spread the documents across
15:03my desk scanning each page with the precision of someone defusing a bomb roman corsetti age 34
15:09inherited his father's mid-tier real estate empire at 26 and tripled its value in under five years
15:16on paper he was a legitimate businessman commercial developments luxury hotels a philanthropic foundation
15:23but i knew better the corsetti family had deep roots in old money networks that didn't show up on
15:29any balance sheet the kind of connections that could make a corporation vanish overnight
15:33or bury a scandal so deep it would never surface roman and i had history not the kind i ever
15:39talked
15:39about we had met seven years ago before my parents died before i inherited ashford capital before i made
15:45the catastrophic decision to marry derrick blackwell i was 20 studying abroad in london and roman was
15:51the brooding italian american who sat in the back of my economics lecture and never took notes but aced
15:56every exam we had been inseparable for one semester then my parents plane went down and i disappeared from
16:02everyone's life including his i never explained never said goodbye just vanished and now vasa hale my
16:08ex-husband's mistress was climbing into his car leo i didn't look up from the file what's vanessa's
16:15connection to corsetti leo pulled up a tablet according to social media vanessa's worked briefly
16:20as an event coordinator for corsetti holdings about two years ago there are photos of her at several
16:26corsetti hosted gallus there is also a rumor unconfirmed that she and roman were romantically involved
16:33before she started seeing derrick my stomach tightened so vanessa had gone from roman's orbit
16:38to derrick's bed and now she was running back the question was why before i could dig deeper my desk
16:45phone rang the caller id read front desk security ems ashford there's a delivery for you no sender name
16:53the security team has already screened it a box send it up two minutes later leo placed a matte black
17:01box
17:02on my desk no card no label just a small gold clasp i opened it inside besting on black velvet
17:09was a
17:09single white chess piece a queen my blood went cold only one person had ever called me that a private
17:15joke from a london cafe over cheap espresso and a borrowed chess set you always play queen first
17:21roman had said most people protect their queen you use yours as a weapon that's because most people
17:28don't understand power he had laughed a low warm sound i hadn't heard in seven years i closed the
17:34box leo where did this come from the courier service says it was ordered this morning paid in cash no
17:44traceable origin i placed the chess piece on my desk saying he knew about the blackwell takeover and he
17:50was letting me know in his own insufferably cryptic way that he was watching my phone buzzed a text from
17:56an unknown number hello queen it has been a while guy typed back without hesitation what do you want
18:02roman three dots appeared disappeared appeared again then dinner tonight tonight 8 p.m you know
18:09the place guy didn't know the place a small italian restaurant on the lower east side that we used to
18:14frequent in the summers when he visited new york the kind of place with checkered tablecloths and a 70
18:19year old owner who made pasta by hand every instinct told me to ignore the message but roman corsetti
18:25didn't reach out without reason if nessa was connected to him i needed to know how deep it went
18:30and whether the blackwell mess was bigger than a cheating husband in a stolen necklace i picked up
18:36the chess piece turning it slowly between my fingers then i typed i'll be there at eight don't be
18:41late his response was immediate guy and never late you are the one who disappeared guy set the phone
18:47down this was no longer just about derrick
18:55the restaurant hadn't changed same bed checkered tablecloths same dim lighting same scent of garlic
19:02and fresh basil heavy in the air even the old owner sal was still there shuffling between tables with a
19:08dish towel over his shoulder i arrived at 7 55 roman was already seated in the back corner our old
19:14table
19:14he looked up the moment i walked in as if he had sensed me before he saw me seven years
19:19had sharpened
19:19his features the boyish edges were gone replaced by a jaw that could cut glass and eyes so dark they
19:25swallowed the candlelight his suit was charcoal no top relaxed controlled dangerous you're early he said
19:32you said don't be late i sat across from him i'm never late either a ghost of a smile you've
19:37changed
19:38everyone changes his gaze moved over my face not like this as if cataloging every difference the
19:44aurelia i knew wouldn't have bought a company just to punish a man the aurelia you knew also wouldn't
19:50have married one who deserved punishing he leaned back studying me fair point sal appeared with a bottle
19:56of good wine the same barolo we used to order he poured two glasses without asking padded roman on the
20:02shoulder and disappeared i didn't touch my glass let's skip the nostalgia why am i here
20:11because you want to know why vanessa hale got into my car this morning that was new the roman i
20:17remembered preferred to circle a topic like a hawk before diving so you know i'm watching i know
20:23everything aurelia i've known where you were for the past five years i knew when you married blackwell
20:30i knew when he started cheating his voice didn't change but something flickered behind his eyes
20:36i knew when you filed the acquisition paperwork three months ago he months he had known for three
20:42months if you knew all of that i said carefully then why didn't you interfere he lifted his glass
20:50because you didn't want me to you made that very clear when you vanished without a word seven years ago
20:57zation landed like a blade between my ribs i held his gaze i had my reasons he drank set the
21:03glass
21:03down i'm sure you did but that's not why we're here tonight then why vanessa came to me this afternoon
21:12with a proposal she wants me to help derrick blackwell challenge the takeover she claims the
21:17acquisition was done using insider information and that she has documents to prove it my jaw tightened
21:23that's a lie i know it's a lie the question is who gave her the idea
21:29vanessa isn't smart enough to fabricate a legal strategy on her own
21:33someone is coaching her i thought for a moment derrick's lawyers
21:39no i had my people check the blackwell legal team is scrambling
21:45they didn't see this coming any more than derrick did roman leaned forward lowering his voice there's a
21:50third party involved aurelia someone who wants blackwell industries and they're using vanessa
21:58as a pawn to destabilize your position a chill crawled up my spine who roman reached into his jacket and
22:06placed a single photograph on the table i looked down it was a photo of vanessa at a private dinner
22:12seated next to a silver-haired man in his 60s i recognized him instantly victor hale vanessa's
22:18father and one of the most ruthless corporate raiders on wall street vanessa isn't just derrick's
22:23mistress roman said she was planted her father has been eyeing blackwell industries for over a year
22:29the affair the divorce the chaos it was all engineered to weaken the company's value before a
22:37hostile bit i stared at the photograph everything i thought i understood about the last five years
22:42shifted rearranged collapsed and rebuilt itself into something far uglier derrick doesn't know
22:48i whispered derrick is an idiot roman said flatly but no he doesn't know roman watched me in silence
22:55then spoke again victor hale's bid is set to go through in 72 hours if he succeeds he won't just
23:02take blackwell industries he'll use it as leverage to go after ashford capital's commercial real estate
23:07portfolio my portfolio my father's legacy i set the glass down hard enough to rattle the silverware
23:14then i have 72 hours to destroy him roman's lips curved not quite a smile but close you'll need help
23:21i don't need anyone's help you don't need it he agreed but you'd be a fool to refuse it we
23:28stared at
23:28each other across the table the candlelight flickering between us seven years of silence
23:33seven years of questions neither of us had asked and now sitting across from the only man who had
23:39ever truly known me i realized something terrifying i did it and that was the most dangerous thing of all
23:48i didn't sleep that night by 2 a.m i was in ashford capital's war room a windowless conference space
23:55on
23:55the 41st floor that most employees didn't even know existed screens lined every wall financial
24:01data streamed in real time leo had assembled a small trusted team our chief legal counsel margaret
24:07wu head of acquisitions james alcott and priya sharma our forensic accountant who could trace a dollar
24:12through 17 shell companies i laid out everything roman had told me when i finished the room was silent
24:18margaret spoke first if victor hale files a competing acquisition claim within 72 hours
24:24we'll be locked in a legal battle that could take months during that time a judge could freeze our
24:30controlling shares james added freeze our shares which is exactly what he wants tank the stock price
24:37then swoop in with a lowball offer priya pulled up a screen i've already started tracing vanessa's
24:42financial records she has accounts in three offshore jurisdictions sem the caymans lachenstein and
24:49singapore all open within the last 18 months i noted right around the time she started dating
24:55derrick exactly and look at this zoomed in on a series of wire transfers monthly payments from a trust
25:02fund registered to hail industries routed through two intermediary accounts landing in vanessa's personal
25:09account 50 000 a month margaret leaned forward she was being paid to seduce derrick blackwell
25:15the words hung in the air like smoke i thought about derrick stupid vain unfaithful derrick and felt
25:22unexpected pang of something not sympathy exactly more like the grim recognition that we have both been
25:28played there's more priya switched screens six weeks ago vanessa's made a large withdrawal in two
25:34hundred thousand dollars ian and transferred it to a legal firm kessler and briggs james whistled that's
25:40victor hale's personal attack dog firm they specialize in hostile takeover litigation so the legal
25:48challenge is already in motion said priya's voice was tight kessler briggs filed a sealed motion yesterday
25:56afternoon i couldn't access the contents but the case number is linked to blackwell industries 72 hours had
26:03been optimistic victor hale was already ahead of us i pressed my palms flat against the table
26:08options margaret didn't hesitate we need to prove that vanessa was acting as an agent of hale
26:15industries when she infiltrated the blackwell family if we can demonstrate that victor austrated the
26:22affair to manipulate blackwell industries stock price that's securities fraud it would invalidate
26:28any competing bid can we prove it with these financial records it's a strong start but we need
26:35more we need testimony from someone inside hale industries who can confirm victor's involvement
26:40a whistle alarm i murmured or someone with leverage james suggested someone who owes us a favor
26:47sam or who has their own reason to want victor hale taken down my phone buzzed a text from roman
26:54asterisk breakfast tomorrow i have something you need to see asterisk i stared at the message then
26:59looked at my team keep digging i want every transaction every communication every connection
27:05between victor hale and the blackwell family mapped out by morning as they disperse ems ashford
27:10can i ask you something personal go ahead roman corsetti can you trust him it was the right question
27:18the smart question i don't know i admitted but right now he's the only person outside this room
27:24who knows what victor hale is planning and he came to me before i came to him leo nodded slowly
27:31just be
27:31careful corsetti has his own interests everyone does i thought about the white chess piece still
27:37sitting on my desk i know leo believe me i know
27:45wellman was waiting at the same restaurant same table same burolo already poured you look like
27:50you haven't slept he said as i sat down i haven't talk he slid a manila envelope across the table
27:57victor
27:57hale held a private meeting last night with three blackwell industries board members he's offering
28:01them personal buyouts in exchange for voting against your acquisition at the next shareholder meeting
28:05i opened the envelope inside were photographs time stamped high resolution showing victor shaking
28:11hands with board members i recognized how did you get these i have people everywhere aurelia
28:17you know that i studied the photos if these three vote against me
28:23combined with the shares hale is accumulating through shell companies he'll have enough to
28:28force a revote on the acquisition and with a sympathetic judge he could get an injunction within days i
28:34close the envelope then i need to get to these board members before he does jerald foss is a lost
28:39cause
28:40he's been on hale's payroll for years i have the records to prove it diana chu is wavering she's loyal
28:45to the blackwell name but she's terrified of victor and martin kemp romeo paused martin is the key
28:51he holds the swing vote and he's old school he won't be bought but he can be convinced if someone
28:56he
28:56respects makes the case who does he respect well men held my gaze your father martin and richard ashford
29:04were close friends he was at your parents funeral a sharp ache bloomed in my chest i pushed it down
29:10i'll meet with martin today roman reached into his jacket and produced i thought you might say that
29:16his private number he's expecting a call from me sam but hearing from you will carry more weight
29:23i took the card our fingers brushed neither of us pulled away immediately why are you helping me roman
29:29the question i've been avoiding what's in this for you he was quiet for a long moment victor hale
29:36destroyed a friend of mine a man named elliot graves ran a development firm in boston planted someone close
29:43to him engineered a scandal gutted his company and bought the remains for pennies roman's voice was
29:48steady but i could hear the steel beneath it elliot killed himself six months later the restaurant
29:53noise faded to a murmur i've been waiting for the right moment to bring victor down roman continued when
29:59i saw what he was doing to blackwell industries and realized you were the one standing in his way
30:04i knew the moment had arrived so i'm a means to an end you're the only person i've ever met
30:09who's smart
30:09enough ruthless enough and well resourced enough to beat him he leaned forward and you happen to be
30:15the one person i couldn't bring myself to forget the words landed somewhere deep in a place i'd spent
30:21seven years trying to wall off i stood tugging the ombre my arm i'll call martin this afternoon
30:27aurelia i stopped when this is over sim and it will end one way or another you and i have
30:34a conversation
30:34that's seven years overdue i didn't turn around one war at a time roman but as i walked out into
30:41the
30:41morning light my heart was beating fast for it martin camp lived in a brown stone on the upper west
30:51side the kind with original crown molding and a library that smelled like pipe tobacco and old leather
30:57he opened the door himself no butler no assistant just a 70 year old man in a cardigan reading glasses
31:04perched on his nose he said my name like he was tasting something bittersweet aurelia ashford
31:10you look just like your mother something cracked inside me i held it together mr kemp thank you for
31:18seeing me he led me to his study gestured to a worn armchair and sat across from me a framed
31:24photograph
31:24on his desk showed him shaking hands with my father at some long ago charity gala he said without preamble
31:32i watched you take over blackwell industries bold move richard would've been proud i'm not sure about
31:40that i am he studied me over his glasses your father never did anything halfway neither it seems do you
31:50i pulled out the photographs roman had given me and placed them on the desk victor hale is coming for
31:55my acquisition he's already turned gerald foss and he's working on diana chew you're the swing vote
32:02mr kemp martin looked at the photos his expression didn't change but his fingers tightened around his
32:10teacup victor hale is a snake he said simply i've known that for 30 years then you know what he'll
32:17do
32:17if he gets control of blackwell industries he'll strip it sell off the assets and use the proceeds to
32:24launch a broader attack including against ashford capital martin set down his tea you're asking me
32:30to vote in your favor at the shareholder meeting i'm asking you to do what's right he was quiet for
32:36a long time the clock on the wall ticked steadily there's something you should know he said at last
32:44victor came to see me two days ago
32:48he didn't offer me money he offered me something far more personal my pulse quickened
32:56what martin reached into a drawer and pulled out a document he placed it on the desk between us
33:02it was a medical report his name was at the top the diagnosis line read ever staged the third pancreatic
33:09cancer martin said his voice steady victor somehow obtained my medical records he told me he has
33:16connections to an experimental treatment program in switzerland one that isn't available through normal
33:23channels he's using your illness as leverage my blood ran cold he's offering pancreatic cancer
33:30martin said his voice steady victor somehow obtained my medical records he told me he has connections
33:37to an experimental treatment program in switzerland one that isn't available through
33:44normal channels he's using your illness as leverage my blood ran cold he's offering me extra time with
33:50my grandchildren in exchange for my vote martin smiled sadly it's the cruelest kind of bribery
33:58the kind that almost works i sat forward mr kem i can get you into that program
34:05ashford capital has a biomedical investment division we fund three of the top oncology research centers in
34:11europe i can make a call today his eyes sharpened don't offer me something just to buy my vote aurelia
34:19that would make you no different from victor i held his gaze i'm not buying your vote i'm telling you
34:26that you have options victor doesn't want you to know about your vote is yours whatever you decide
34:33i'll make that call regardless martin stared at me for a long moment then he leaned back and let
34:40out a breath that seemed to carry the weight of decades your father once told me that the measure
34:45of a person isn't what they do when they have power it's what they refuse to do he picked up
34:52the phone
34:53on his desk and dialed diana it's martin we need to talk about the shareholder meeting i sat in silence
35:04listening as the tide began to turn
35:10the next 48 hours were a controlled demolition martin kemp called diana chu and whatever he said
35:17convinced her to hold her vote with diana locked down victor's path to a majority collapsed unless he could
35:23find another way in he found one at 3 p.m on the second day kessler and briggs filed an
35:28emergency
35:28injunction claiming that my acquisition of blackwell industries had been conducted using material
35:33non-public information insider trading the accusation was absurd every piece of data i'd used was publicly
35:40available but the filing triggered an automatic sec view and until the review was complete my shares
35:45would be frozen victor hale didn't need to win the case the judge granted a temporary restraining order
35:51your voting rights are suspended pending investigation how long could be weeks could
35:57be months victor's lawyers are going to drag this out as long as possible i turned to priya
36:03the offshore accounts vanessa's payments tell me you have everything documented
36:09stamus did verified and cross-referenced priya confirmed but it's not enough for the sec
36:15we need direct evidence something on at buicks my phone buzzed we need to meet now not the restaurant
36:24my office 30 minutes later i was in the corsetti holding on park avenue roman's office was sparse
36:32dark wood minimal furniture a wall of windows overlooking the city he was standing when i walked in his
36:39expression grin vented victor filed the injunction i know but that's not why i called you here he
36:46turned a laptop screen toward me one of my people intercepted this an hour it was an audio recording
36:52he pressed play victor hale's voice filled the room crisp and unmistakable the sec filing is just a
36:58delay tactic once ashford shares are frozen we move to phase two i want blackwell industry stocked below
37:0312 by end a week use the singapore account to short the position and make sure vanessa keeps derrick
37:08occupied the second voice male unfamiliar responded what about corsetti he's been seen with the ashford
37:16woman victor laughed roman corsetti is a sentimental fool he thinks he's protecting her by the time he
37:22realizes what's actually happening it'll be too late recording ended i looked at roman what does he mean
37:27what's actually happening that's what concerns me roman's jaw tightened victor isn't just going after
37:33blackwell industries it's all a smokescreen for what he pulled up a document on his screen my
37:40forensic team found this a subsidiary called orion ventures its sole purpose is to acquire distressed
37:46commercial real estate assets i scanned the filing then i saw it a list of target properties 23 buildings
37:53across manhattan boston and dc every single one was owned by ashford capital he's not trying to take
37:59blackwell industries he's trying to bankrupt me blackwell is just the weapon roman nod if he
38:06crashes blackwell's stock while your shares are frozen it triggers a margin call on ashford capital's
38:11leveraged positions you'd be forced to sell assets at firevale price and orion ventures would be waiting
38:16to buy every building your father ever owned i stood at the window staring out at the city my father
38:22had
38:22helped build five years ago i had walked away from my name my fortune my legacy all for a man
38:29who never
38:30deserved me i had walked that dream was dead but my father's legacy wouldn't die with it i turned back
38:36to roman the recording can it hold up in court it was obtained through surveillance not a wiretap warrant
38:45admissibility is questionable hold out my phone then we don't take it to court
38:49we take it to the sec directly combined with priya's financial trail it's enough to trigger
38:54a full investigation into hail industries victor won't be able to execute his plan if his own assets
38:59are frozen you want to use his own tactic against him he taught me a valuable lesson you don't need
39:05to win the war you just need to make sure your enemy can't fight for the first time roman smiled
39:11a real
39:12smile not the guarded half curve i'd seen before there she is he murmured the queen i remember ignored the
39:18way
39:18my pulse stuttered call your lawyer we file tomorrow morning he picked up his phone already done one
39:25more thing what derek called me an hour ago he knows about victor's plan he wants to meet with derek
39:34called you he's desperate vanessa cleaned out his personal accounts this morning and disappeared
39:39he's broke humiliated and finally starting to understand what happened to him i thought about the
39:44man who had thrown divorce papers at my face three days ago and will you tell him i'll think about
39:50it i picked up my coat that depends on whether he's ready to do exactly what i tell him
39:59derek blackwell showed up at ashford capital the next morning looking like a man who hadn't slept
40:04showered or eaten in days his suit was wrinkled his eyes were bloodshot the arrogant tilt of his chin was
40:12gone replaced by something i had never once seen on his face humility leo escorted him to my office
40:19i didn't offer him a seat this time either but he didn't try to take one he just stood in
40:25front of
40:25my desk hands at his sides aurelia his voice cracked on my name i know i don't deserve to be
40:32here you're
40:33right you don't sit down he sat vanessa's gone he said she emptied my accounts personal savings the
40:47joint account even the emergency fund my mother set up three hundred thousand dollars gone overnight
40:52i know his head snapped up you know i know everything derek i've known about vanessa's real
41:01identity for two days now i opened a folder and placed it in front of him vanessa halio
41:07daughter of victor hale ceo of hale industries she was planted in your life to destabilize blackwell
41:14industries so her father could execute a hostile takeover derek read the documents with each page the
41:21color drained further from his face the affair the divorce it was all injured yes he looked up at
41:30me and for the first time in five years i saw the man i had once married not the arrogant
41:35heir not the
41:36unfaithful husband just a lost broken person who had been used why are you showing me this because i
41:43need your help he blinked my help after everything i did to you victor hale filed an ssc complaint to
41:52freeze my shares if i can't vote at the shareholder meeting he wins but there's one thing he didn't
41:59account for what you you still hold eight percent of blackwell industries through your personal trust
42:06it's the one asset vanessa couldn't touch because it's locked in a generational trust with a morality
42:11clause derek stared you want me to vote with you i want you to stand up in front of the
42:17board tell
42:18them exactly what happened and vote to ratify my acquisition your testimony combined with the
42:23evidence my team has assembled will be enough to lift the injunction and destroy victor's case
42:28and if i do this victor will come after me victor is going to come after you regardless derek
42:36he used you he doesn't need you anymore the only question is whether you go down as his puppet
42:43or stand up as someone who fought back the silence stretched then derek did something i never expected
42:52he laughed a hollow bitter sound you know what's funny my mother always said you weren't good enough for
42:59me that you had no ambition no vision she said vanessa was better he met my eyes and now now
43:08i'm sitting
43:08in your office in your building asking for your help and you're the only person in the world willing to
43:14give it to me i didn't feel satisfaction i didn't feel vindication i just felt tired the shareholder meeting
43:20is in 36 hours i said my legal team will prepare your statement you'll need to review it tonight he
43:27stood
43:29i'll do it aurelia what i'm sorry not because i need something from you
43:38because i should have said it a long time ago i held his gaze for a moment then nodded once
43:44and now
43:45he left leo appeared in the doorway do you believe him it doesn't matter if i believe him it matters
43:53if the board does my phone buzzed roman victor knows about the sec filing he is accelerating the
44:01shareholder meeting may be moved up i typed back how soon tomorrow 9am 36 hours had just become 12.
44:14i didn't panic panic was a luxury i couldn't afford by midnight my war room was fully operational
44:22margaret had derrick's testimony drafted priya had the financial evidence packaged into a presentation
44:27that even a first year law student could follow james had contacted every friendly shareholder to
44:33confirm their attendance roman arrived at 1am with two cups of coffee and a flash drive
44:39what's on it i asked victor's communications with gerald foss going back 18 months
44:44emails text recorded phone calls my people attained them through foss's former assistant
44:49she quit last month and was more than happy to cooperate i plugged in the drive
44:53the contents were devastating victor had been coordinating with foss to inflate and then crash
44:58blackwell industries stock timing the manipulation to coincide with keyboard decisions
45:03this is securities fraud margaret said reading over my shoulder clear documented undeniable securities
45:11fraud it's enough to get foss removed from the board and potentially arrested
45:17priya added which means his vote is invalidated
45:20i turned to roman if foss's vote is thrown out and derrick votes with us you have a super majority
45:27the acquisition is locked victor can't touch it for the first time in days i felt something loosen in
45:34my chest but roman's expression remained guarded there's a complication of course there was victor filed a motion to have
45:42the meeting held at a neutral location the hail industries conference center in midtown
45:47the judge approved it an hour ago james swore under his breath he wants us on his turf
45:53it's a power play roman said he wants to intimidate the board members surround them with
45:59his people his security his atmosphere i stood pacing the length of the room then we show up with
46:06something he doesn't expect which is i looked at roman everything we walk in with the financial
46:12evidence derrick's testimony foss's communications and the audio recording we don't hold anything back
46:18we put it all on the table and let the board decide the recording may not be admissible in court
46:25this isn't court it's a shareholder meeting the rules of evidence don't apply we just need the
46:30board to hear victor hale in his own words admitting to mark manipulation roman considered this
46:36then he nodded slowly it's aggressive victor hale planted a woman in my husband's bed to steal my
46:42father's legacy aggressive is the least of what i'm going to be the room was quiet then margaret smiled
46:50i'll have everything ready by 7 am priya james i want backup copies of every document on encrypted
46:58drives if anything happens to the originals we don't lose a thing and me roman asked i met his eyes
47:06you'll be there front row i want victor to see you and know exactly whose side you're on something
47:11passed between us unspoken electric and entirely too complicated for a night like this front row it is
47:20he said quietly everyone filed out roman lingered
47:27aurelia roman if you're about to give me a motivational speech i was gonna say you have
47:32coffee on your sleeve i looked down he was right for the first time in days i laughed he smiled
47:39that
47:40rare real smile and something in the room shifted the air felt lighter warmer get some sleep he said
47:48tomorrow you end this tomorrow we end this he held my gaze for one heartbeat two three then he left
47:58and i sat alone in the war room surrounded by evidence of betrayal and greed and allowed myself
48:05just for a moment to feel something other than fury hope
48:11the hail industries conference center was a monument to intimidation marble floors 40-foot ceilings
48:18security personnel stationed at effort entrance victor hail had designed this building to make
48:24everyone who entered feel small i walked through the front doors at 8 45 am with margaret leo and priya
48:30flanking me disharik arrived separately escorted by two of my security personnel roman was already inside
48:37seated in the front row of the observation gallery exactly as promised he wore a black suit and an
48:44expression of perfect calm victor hail sat at the head of the conference table like a king on his throne
48:51silver-haired sharp-eyed impeccably dressed he looked at me the way a cat looks at a mouse
48:57ems ashford his voice was smooth practice how kind of you to join us mr hale lovely building
49:04compensating for something a few board members coughed to hide their reactions
49:09the meeting was called to order the chair a neutral attorney appointed by the court outlined the agenda
49:16first item ratification of the ashford capital acquisition of blackwell industries victor's attorney
49:22a razor-thin man from kessler and briggs stood immediately before we proceed we'd like to enter
49:29into the record our formal objection to this acquisition on the grounds of if i may i interrupted
49:35standing before mr hale's attorney launches into what i'm sure is a very expensive objection i'd like to
49:42present some materials to the board the chair looked between us ems ashford this is somewhat irregular
49:48so is using your daughter as a honeypot to destroy a publicly traded company but here we are the room
49:55went dead silent victor's smile didn't waver but his eyes went flat cold like a shark's i nodded to
50:02priya who distributed folders to every board member inside you'll find documentation of a coordinated
50:09scheme by victor hale to manipulate the stock price of blackwell industries the scheme involved planting
50:15his daughter vanessa hale as an agent to infiltrate the blackwell family destabilize the company's
50:21leadership and create conditions for a hostile takeover i walked the board through every piece
50:27of evidence the offshore accounts the monthly payments the connection to kessler and briggs
50:33the orion ventures subsidiary the target list of ashford capital properties the board members
50:40faces shifted from skepticism to shock to barely concealed outrage then i played the audio recording
50:46victor's own voice filled the conference room every word every instruction every casual reference to
50:53treating people's lives like chess pieces when it ended the silence was suffocating victor hale stood
51:00slowly his composure was cracking not visibly not to anyone who didn't know what to look for but i saw
51:06the micro tremor in his right hand the slight flare of his nostrils this this recording was obtained
51:13illegally he said it's inadmissible simple this isn't a courtroom mr hale the chair's voice was firm
51:21and the financial documents corroborating the recording are more than sufficient i turned to derek
51:30mr blackwell derek stood he was pale but steady he looked at the board the people who had
51:36watched him grow up who had sat at his family's dinner table who had trusted his father everything
51:43miss ashford has presented is true he said i was manipulated by vanessa hale at her father's
51:50direction i take full responsibility for my failure to see it and i am formally casting my eight percent
51:57share in support of ashford capital's acquisition gerald foss shot to his feet this is absurd
52:05you can't just mr foss i turned to him with a calm smile would you like me to share your
52:12communications with victor hale
52:15as well because i have 18 months of emails that suggest you've been acting as his inside man
52:21foss's mouth opened he sat down without another word the chair called for a vote one by one the board
52:29members voted martin kemp in favor deanna chu in favor derek blackwell in favor when the final count was
52:37read the acquisition was ratified by a super majority victor hale sat motionless his empire his scheme
52:45his carefully constructed house of cards had collapsed in under an hour i gathered my documents
52:51buttoned my jacket and paused beside his chair on my way out mr hale a piece of advice from one
52:58ceo to
52:59another he didn't look at me never underestimate a woman you tried to rob you don't just fight back
53:04i leaned in close enough to whisper we take everything
53:10i walked out of the conference room and into the morning light roman was waiting by the elevator
53:16he didn't say anything he just fell into step beside me we rode the elevator down in silence
53:21when the doors opened to the lobby i stopped roman yes that conversation you mentioned
53:29the one that's seven years overdue he turned to face me his dark eyes unreadable i'm ready to have it
53:35now
53:35and for the first time since this all began the look on his face wasn't guarded or strategic or careful
53:44it was just hopeful
53:48we went back to sale's restaurant it was 11 a.m on a tuesday the place was nearly empty sale
53:55took one
53:56look at us brought out two espressos and a chessboard and disappeared into the kitchen roman sat across
54:01for me his jacket off sleeves rolled to his forearms without the armor of a boardroom he looked younger
54:07almost like the man i'd known in london almost seven years he said seven years i echoed you left without
54:15a word one day you were there the next gone no call no letter nothing my parents had just died
54:24roman
54:26i inherited a 12 billion dollar company i didn't know existed in a legacy i wasn't prepared to carry
54:31i was 20 years old and the lawyers told me that anyone close to me could become a target
54:38so you pushed everyone away i pushed you away there's a difference you could have told me and what would
54:46you have done dropped everything followed me into a world of corporate warfare and billion dollar
54:52decisions you had your own family your own empire to build i would have been there aurelia
55:00that's what i would have done the simplicity of it broke something inside me i wrapped my hands around
55:06the espresso cup i made a choice i chose to disappear to build walls to handle everything alone and then
55:16i married derek because i wanted to feel normal i wanted someone who didn't know about the money the
55:22name the weight of it and instead you got someone who didn't know you at all yes roman reached across
55:31the
55:31table your move he said i moved the queen first he smiled aurelia i'm not gonna pretend the last seven
55:39years didn't happen you hurt me deeply and i spent a long time being angry about it i know but
55:49i also
55:49spent that time building something corsetti holdings isn't just real estate anymore we have security
55:57divisions intelligence networks legal teams that rival any firm in the country i built all of it
56:04and some part of me built it because i knew i knew that one day you'd need someone in your
56:10corner who
56:11couldn't be bought threatened or broken i stared at the board my throat was tight that's either the most
56:19romantic thing anyone's ever said to me or the most terrifying
56:27it's both i oved upon he moved a knight what happens now i asked now victor hale faces an sec
56:37investigation potential criminal charges and the complete dismantling of his scheme vain sai will
56:43surface eventually probably in a country without an extradition treaty derek will spend the rest of his
56:48life trying to rebuild a reputation that may be beyond saving i meant with us roman's hand paused
56:55over the board i know what you meant he looked at me really looked at me and i saw everything
57:01he'd
57:01been holding back seven years of waiting seven years of watching from a distance seven years of building an
57:07empire partly just to be worthy of standing next to me i'm not proposing anything aurelia not tonight
57:14you just finished a war you need time to breathe i've been holding my breath for five years
57:22i'm done waiting to breathe something shifted in his eyes the guarded wall came down not all at once
57:29but enough enough for me to see the man behind the strategy the silence the chess moves
57:34then let's start with dinner he said a real one not a strategy session not an intelligence briefing
57:43just two people who spent too long pretending they don't need each other tomorrow night
57:50tonight his voice was soft i've waited long enough i looked at the chessboard between us then i reached
57:57over and tipped my king you're conceding he raised an eyebrow no i smiled i'm clearing the board we don't
58:05need a game between us anymore he held my gaze then slowly he reached across the table and took my
58:11hand
58:12his grip was warm steady real outside the city hummed with its relentless rhythm deals being made empires
58:20rising and falling people chasing power they'd never quite catch but in a tiny italian
58:25astraunt on the lower east side two people who had spent seven years running from each other
58:30finally stopped and for the first time in longer than i could remember i didn't feel like a queen
58:35i didn't feel like a queen or a ceo or someone's ex-wife i just felt like aurelia and that
58:42was enough
58:42you
58:43You
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