Another had chaired the audit committee of a national construction firm.
The remaining two were former judges.
The woman introduced herself as Naomi Pierce, interim chair of the Whitlock board.
“Mr.
Whitlock,” she said to Jason, “your access to company accounts, premises, and electronic systems has been suspended pending an investigation into fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, and misappropriation of shareholder distributions.”
Jason’s confidence cracked for the first time.
“You cannot remove me in the middle of a probate dispute.”
“This action was authorized under the company’s bylaws,” Naomi said.
“It does not depend on the outcome of probate.”
He reached for his phone.
One of the security officers spoke.
“Your corporate devices must remain on the table.”
“This is my personal phone.”
Naomi placed a document in front of him.
“It was purchased by the company and enrolled in the corporate security system.
You may receive a forensic copy of your personal data through counsel.”
Jason looked toward his mother, expecting reinforcement.
Margaret sat rigidly, both hands wrapped around her handbag.
Then Leonard removed the final document from beneath the will.
It carried Megan’s name.
Megan stared at the signature line.
“I’ve never seen that.”
“It is not your statement,” Leonard said.
“It is an access report.”
He placed a second sheet beside it.
The report showed that Megan’s employee credentials had been used to open the corporate records room late one evening during my divorce.
Her account had accessed the scanned permit containing my signature, the shareholder ledger, and a template for stock-transfer waivers.
Megan pushed the papers away.
“I was Jason’s executive assistant.
He used my login all the time.”
Jason’s head snapped toward her.
“Careful.”
That single word changed her face.
Until then, she had looked frightened.
Now she looked betrayed.
“You said you needed to correct a filing error,” she whispered.
“I said be careful.”
Margaret leaned toward Megan.
“You were paid extremely well for your discretion.”
Naomi turned to her.
“Mrs.
Whitlock, do you wish to repeat that statement after consulting counsel?”
Margaret realized too late that the room was still being recorded.
She closed her mouth.
Megan looked from Jason to Margaret, then down at the access report.
“The night this says I entered the records room, Jason told me Emily was trying to steal the company in the divorce,” she said.
“He gave me a folder and asked me to scan the documents inside.
He said the board had already approved everything.”
“That is a lie,” Jason said.
Megan’s voice shook.
“You stood beside me while I did it.”
“You were obsessed with replacing Emily.
You would have done anything I asked.”
The cruelty landed harder because Jason said it so easily.
Megan recoiled as though he had struck her.
