The Contract That Was Never Meant to Reach the CEO
Chapter 4
Ethan spent Thursday night reviewing the files on the flash drive.
The deeper he went, the worse it became.
Cole Automotive owned valuable properties in growing commercial districts.
The dealerships themselves were profitable.
But the land beneath them was worth several times more.
Julian had quietly created shell companies that appeared to have no connection to Cole Automotive.
Those companies were positioned to purchase the properties after a controlled bankruptcy.
The plan was elegant.
Overinflate expenses.
Create artificial debt.
Blame the losses on the CEO.
Force Ethan out.
Sell the properties.
Walk away with hundreds of millions.
But there was something else.
A folder labeled Project Meridian.
Ethan opened it.
Inside was a list of employees.
Maya’s name appeared near the top.
Thomas Reed’s name was below it.
Next to each employee was a note.
Knows too much.
Ethan’s jaw tightened.
He called Maya.
“No more calls,” she said immediately.
“Why?”
“Someone followed me home.”
Ethan stood.
“Where are you?”
“I left.”
“Where?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Then listen carefully. Do not go back to the dealership.”
“I wasn’t planning to.”
Ethan lowered his voice.
“Maya, I need you to trust me.”
“I do.”
“Good.”
A pause.
Then she said:
“There’s something else.”
“What?”
“My father kept a second file.”
“Where?”
“He told me never to open it unless something happened to me.”
Ethan felt a chill.
“What happened?”
“He died three days ago.”
Ethan stopped.
“You said he died months ago.”
“I lied.”
“Why?”
“Because I didn’t know who to trust.”
Ethan understood.
“Where is the file?”
“At the dealership.”
“Where?”
“In the service department.”
“Specific.”
“The old diagnostic room.”
Ethan grabbed his coat.
“I’ll get it.”
“No.”
“Maya—”
“You’re not going alone.”
She gave him an address.
They met after midnight.
The dealership was dark.
Ethan used an old employee entrance.
Inside, the showroom was completely silent.
Maya led him toward the service area.
“Nobody comes here after closing.”
They reached the diagnostic room.
Behind an old equipment cabinet, Maya found a loose panel.
Inside was a metal box.
Ethan opened it.
There was a handwritten notebook.
Thomas Reed’s handwriting.
The first pages contained financial calculations.
Then came something unexpected.
A list of names.
Julian Price.
Robert Vance.
Three board members.
Two outside attorneys.
And one more name.
Ethan Cole.
Ethan stared.
“What?”
Maya looked over his shoulder.
“Why is your name there?”
The next page explained it.
Thomas believed Ethan wasn’t merely being deceived.
He believed Ethan was being positioned as the scapegoat.
Someone had been collecting evidence to make it appear that Ethan personally authorized the fraudulent contracts.
But the final page contained something worse.
A copy of a contract bearing Ethan’s signature.
It was dated six months earlier.
The signature looked perfect.
Too perfect.
Ethan stared at it.
“I didn’t sign this.”
Maya whispered:
“Then someone has access to your private signature file.”
A sound came from the hallway.
Footsteps.
Someone was approaching.
The lights suddenly turned on.
Robert Vance stood in the doorway.
Behind him were two security guards.
Robert smiled.
“I was wondering when you’d come back.”
