Chapter 3 - The Boardroom Execution
Thursday arrived with a heavy, overcast sky that threatened autumn rain.
At 2:00 PM, the executive boardroom on the top floor of TechVista Solutions buzzed with quiet tension. Department heads sat around the polished mahogany table, flipping through glossy presentation folders. At the head of the table sat Naomi Bennett, introduced twenty minutes earlier as the new managing director representing Bennett Capital Partners.
When Sienna Brooks walked into the room, she looked every bit the triumphant mistress. Dressed in a tailored emerald Gucci blazer with perfectly styled auburn hair and an expensive gold Cartier watch—purchased, no doubt, with Garrett’s recent consulting fees—she radiated smug self-assurance.
She took her seat opposite Naomi, offering a polite, professional smile that reeked of condescension. She clearly had no idea who Naomi was beyond a corporate executive from the parent company.
“Good afternoon, everyone,” Sienna began, her voice confident and clear as she clicked her remote to project her first slide onto the smartboard. “Today, I’m thrilled to present our brand expansion strategy for the upcoming fiscal year. Despite recent market shifts, our division is poised for unprecedented growth.”
For twenty minutes, Sienna droned on through a series of generic marketing buzzwords—synergy, consumer engagement, digital footprint—while flashing charts that looked impressive from a distance but fell apart under basic scrutiny.
Throughout the presentation, Naomi sat completely still, resting her chin on her hand, watching Sienna with the clinical detachment of a scientist observing a specimen under a microscope.
“And as you can see from our projected expenditures,” Sienna smiled brightly, clicking to a slide detailing marketing budgets, “our requested operating budget for Q4 is a modest $250,000, which will easily yield a three-hundred percent return on investment, perfectly aligning with Bennett Capital’s aggressive growth goals.”
Sienna paused, expecting nods of approval from the new management. Instead, the room was dead silent.
Harold Kim squirmed in his chair, staring intently at his notepad.
Naomi slowly adjusted her cuffs, picked up her silver pen, and tapped it twice against the mahogany table. The sound echoed loudly in the quiet room.
“A three-hundred percent return, Ms. Brooks?” Naomi’s voice cut through the silence like a scalpel.
Sienna blinked, her professional smile faltering for a fraction of a second before she recovered. “Yes, Ms. Bennett. Based on our historical conversion rates—”
“Your historical conversion rates,” Naomi interrupted smoothly, standing up from her chair and walking slowly toward the smartboard, “which happen to be fictitious.”
Murmurs rippled through the boardroom. Sienna’s face lost a shade of its carefully applied color.
“Excuse me?” Sienna scoffed, attempting a nervous laugh. “I’m not sure what you’re implying—”
“I’m not implying anything, Ms. Brooks. I am stating facts,” Naomi said, pressing a button on her tablet.
Instantly, the smartboard switched from Sienna’s polished presentation to a dense, crimson-highlighted financial audit report bearing the Bennett Capital seal.
“Let’s look at your Q2 travel expenses,” Naomi said, pointing to the screen. “Over twelve thousand dollars expensed for client dinners in Miami and Aspen during weeks when TechVista had zero active clients in those regions. Furthermore, the IP address associated with the online bookings traces directly back to your personal home network.”
Sienna stood up abruptly, her chair scraping harshly against the floor. “This is absurd! This is an invasion of privacy! I demand to know who authorized—'”
“I authorized it,” Naomi said, turning around to face her directly, her eyes locked onto Sienna’s panicked gaze. “As the managing director of Bennett Capital Partners—and, incidentally, the woman whose husband you’ve been spending your nights with.”
The air left the room entirely.
Sienna staggered back against her chair, her hands gripping the edge of the table as the horrifying realization crashed over her. The name Bennett. The acquisition firm. The tired wife she thought she was replacing.
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“Naomi…” Sienna whispered, her voice cracking as the color drained completely from her face.
“Your employment with TechVista Solutions is terminated effective immediately,” Naomi said, her voice ringing with absolute, unyielding authority. “Security is waiting outside to escort you from the building. Any personal items left at your desk will be mailed to your apartment—the one Garrett has been paying for with money he doesn't actually have.”
