Chapter 3 - THE PARTY GUESTS
The guest list made more sense once Naomi stopped treating it like a guest list.
Three independent directors.
Reed Industrial’s outside general counsel.
Our insurance broker.
A restructuring adviser.
Two bankers.
And Harrison Cole.
I had met Harrison twice.
Robert introduced him that night as:
“An old friend from New York.”
He was not.
Harrison was a senior managing director at Blackmere Capital.
Private equity.
The firm that had spent six months quietly discussing an acquisition of Reed Industrial.
I stared at the list.
“He brought the buyer to a family party?”
Naomi nodded.
“And three independent directors.”
“Why?”
“Witnesses.”
The word landed badly.
Blackmere’s most recent informal offer valued Reed Industrial at approximately $418 million.
Robert supported it.
Rebecca supported it.
I opposed the current terms.
Not because private equity was evil.
Because Blackmere wanted:
Facility consolidation.
Management replacement rights.
Sale of two employee-heavy terminals.
Reduction of the employee ownership plan over time.
The price was strong.
The labor protections were weak.
I wanted a different deal or no deal.
Robert called me sentimental.
Maybe.
I called him impatient.
Definitely.
Could he sell without me?
Potentially, depending on final structure and board/shareholder approvals.
But my position as CEO mattered.
So did my employment agreement.
Naomi asked her associate to pull it.
Section 12:
Change of Control.
If Reed Industrial was sold and I was removed without Cause within thirty-six months, I was entitled to:
Salary continuation.
Equity acceleration.
Transaction bonus.
Total estimated value at current pricing:
$14.6 million.
Not company-ending money.
Enough to irritate a buyer.
More important:
Blackmere’s draft term sheet required continuity of current management unless the board lawfully terminated an executive for Cause before closing.
“Cause” included:
Felony conviction.
Fraud.
Intentional breach of fiduciary duty.
Material violent misconduct causing substantial reputational harm.
There it was.
Would two slaps automatically trigger it?
No.
Board investigation.
Notice.
Opportunity to respond.
No magic switch.
But a viral video of the CEO hitting two elderly family members in front of directors could create leverage.
Especially if the context disappeared.
I looked at Naomi.
“Robert wanted Cause.”
“He may have wanted evidence to argue Cause.”
“Using Lily?”
“We do not know that yet.”
Right.
No leap.
Then Detective Ellis called.
Rebecca’s phone had been obtained after she consented to a limited review through counsel.
One text chain had already become important.
ROBERT:
Tonight needs to happen before morning.
REBECCA:
I’m not hitting Daniel.
ROBERT:
Nobody asked you to.
REBECCA:
Then what?
ROBERT:
Make him lose control.
That was bad.
Not enough.
Then:
REBECCA:
Using Lily?
Robert:
She gets upset easily. Keep it small.
My stomach turned.
Keep it small.
The detective continued.
Rebecca:
What if she tells him?
Robert:
By then we have witnesses.
I sat down.
Naomi whispered:
“Jesus.”
Detective Ellis said:
“We’re still authenticating devices and context. Do not contact them.”
I wanted to drive back to Robert’s house and put him through a wall.
That impulse scared me.
Because it was exactly what he thought he could use.
I asked:
“Was Linda in the thread?”
“No.”
“Did Rebecca agree?”
“Later messages suggest participation. We need full extraction.”
The call ended.
I stood beside Lily’s hospital bed.
She had finally fallen asleep.
Stuffed rabbit under her chin.
A nurse had placed a cold compress on her cheek earlier.
The redness was fading.
I touched her hair.
My father had written:
Keep it small.
My daughter’s fear had been measured as an acceptable amount of pain.
For a corporate transaction.
I was not going to forgive that.
But rage was no longer enough.
Robert had built his plan around mine.
The next thing I did had to be something he had not planned for.
I called Naomi.
“Tomorrow morning, I attend the conduct review.”
“You’re suspended from nothing yet.”
“I know.”
“And?”
“I tell them exactly what I did.”
She watched me.
“Both slaps?”
“Both.”
“No justification?”
“Context. Not excuses.”
A small smile.
“Good.”
Then I added:
“And I want the full Blackmere file.”
Naomi nodded.
“Now you’re thinking like a CEO again.”
No.
May you like
I was thinking like Lily’s father.
For once, those were going to be the same thing.
