“Are you safe?”
I looked around my office. Two locks. A security camera. My assistant, Daniel, outside with a copy of the police report and the composed expression of a man who had always known this family would underestimate me.
“Yes,” I said. “I’m safe.”
But safety did not yet feel like comfort. It felt like standing perfectly still after leaping from a burning building, waiting to find out whether any part of you was still on fire.
By evening, Harrington BioSystems’ board held an emergency vote. Malcolm was removed as chairman pending investigation. Ryan was suspended from his executive position. Claire resigned from the charitable foundation after donation records emerged showing that money had been funneled into consulting companies owned by her college friends.
Victoria attempted to do what Victoria always did best: control the narrative.
At 6:00 p.m., a statement appeared from a Harrington family spokesperson.
