Chapter 6 - The Fall of the Patriarch
The downfall of the Montgomery dynasty was swift, public, and merciless.
Within forty-eight hours of Dominic's arrest at the marina, national financial news outlets were running round-the-clock coverage of the "Montgomery Twin Fraud." The stock price of Montgomery Global crashed by forty percent in a single trading session.
At Greenwich Manor, the atmosphere was solemn, like a funeral home before a viewing.
Genevieve walked through the grand iron gates, holding a leather folder containing the final corporate restructuring documents drafted by her legal team.
Inside the library, Archibald Montgomery sat behind his massive mahogany desk. In less than a week, the powerful patriarch looked like he had aged ten years. His posture was slouched, his hair messy, his dark suit wrinkled. His hands trembled as he held a glass of untouched whiskey.
Sitting on the couch across from him was Eleanor, weeping softly into a silk scarf, her manicured hands covering her face.
"Genevieve," Archibald said, his voice raspy and stripped of its former thunder. "Have you come to gloat?"
"I don't waste time gloating, Archibald," Genevieve replied calmly, setting the leather folder on his desk. "I'm here to offer you the only exit strategy that keeps this family out of complete bankruptcy."
Eleanor looked up, her eyes red and swollen. "Genevieve, please... talk to your friends at the SEC. Dominic is your brother-in-law! If he goes to federal prison, the family name will be ruined forever!"
"Dominic is going to prison for at least fifteen years, Eleanor," Genevieve said flatly, without a trace of sympathy. "He signed thirty-two forged federal documents, embezzled forty-two million dollars, and physically assaulted a federal witness on tape. Not even Archibald's legal connections can save him."
Archibald glared at the folder on his desk. "What is this?"
"It's a complete buyout proposal," Genevieve explained, leaning resting her hands on the edge of the desk. "Julian and I have secured backing from my father's holding group and the Sterling Investment Corporation. We are purchasing sixty percent of Montgomery Global's voting shares at market value."
Archibald let out a bitter, raspy laugh. "You're taking my company?"
"You lost your company the moment you allowed Dominic to use Julian's name to cover up your illegal offshore transfers," Genevieve corrected coldly. "Under the terms of this agreement, you will step down as Chairman immediately. You will surrender your voting board seat, retreat to your estate in Florida, and never set foot in Montgomery Tower again."
"And if I refuse?" Archibald growled, his eyes flashing with a dying ember of his old rage.
Genevieve pulled a second document from her jacket pocket.
"If you refuse, I hand this personal ledger over to the U.S. Attorney's office," Genevieve stated calmly. "It details twenty years of tax evasion executed through your Swiss accounts. You won't be retiring to Florida, Archibald. You'll be sharing a federal cell block with your favorite son."
Archibald stared at the paper in her hand. His chest heaved as he fought for breath, realizing the absolute, checkmate position his quiet, "compliant" daughter-in-law had backed him into.
Slowly, with trembling hands, Archibald reached into his breast pocket, pulled out his gold fountain pen, and signed his name at the bottom of the buyout agreement.
He tossed the pen onto the desk, looking up at Genevieve with a mixture of hatred and grudging respect.
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"I thought you were just a quiet girl from a small port family," Archibald whispered.
"I was," Genevieve smiled softly, picking up the signed documents and sliding them safely into her folder. "Until you mistook my silence for weakness."
