"What the fuck do we know right now? Veronica, get me India on the phone. Blake... Get Dad and Ben in here. I want Wyler on speakerphone before you get back." I shot out orders as headed for the boardroom. Everyone was scrambling. They knew as well as I did what was at stake.

I hit the flashing button on the console. "Tell me you found him."

"He was at home, Jack," India sounded pissed. "Hungover as hell and probably still drunk. He smells like he's been this way for days. No fucking wonder he wasn't answering his calls."

"Get him here," I shot out. "I don't care if he's coughing up his liver, you just get his ass in here. I'll pay to have your car cleaned…"

"Damn right, you will." I heard a noise in the background and the disgust in her voice. "And I'm one step ahead of you. We'll be there in ten minutes."

* * *

I was still in my office when they arrived. Spencer was pale and disheveled, ugly stains ran the length of his shirt. He was leaning heavily on India's arm.

"Wait for us in the boardroom, India?” I asked her as gently as I could manage. "We need a moment."

She raised her eyebrows, but closed the door behind her. And louder than was necessary. I watched as Spencer winced.

"They're all waiting in the other room." I stood, tapping my fingertips on the wood of my desk. "I'm giving you a chance to tell me now. I haven't decided yet if you deserve it." I took a deep breath and let it out. "What the hell's going on, Spencer?"

"I didn't get to Wyler before he left the country, Jack. I fucking tried, but I was too late. He never signed it, boss. I'd already fucked up so much," he hiccupped and wiped his mouth. "He was going to sign. He'd told me… and you. I know it was wrong, but he was going to sign it anyway. I just didn't think…"

"You fucking forged a signature on a legal contract…?" My voice was quiet, but my heart was pounding in my chest. "You put my family's entire future on the line to cover for fucking up? I would have taken the contract to him myself, Spencer. There was no goddamned reason…"

"I'll admit it, Jack. I'll tell all of them what I did. I'll resign…

Fuck, you can fire me if you want to." He ran his hands through his stringy hair. "It all got away from me somehow… I lost control… But I'm ready to tell the truth. I need to get this off my chest…"

The phone on my desk buzzed. I picked it up and hit the button. It was India's voice. "They're all here, Jack. Ed's on speaker… But there's one more thing…"

"Tell me."

"Your ex-wife is here, Jack. She just came in and sat down." I could hear the exasperation in her voice. "She says, as a stockholder, she's got the right."

* * *

"Goddamn it, Elaine, this isn't the fucking time or place for whatever demands you've got now."

I'd left India to babysit Spence as I pulled Elaine into the empty hall.

"This merger affects my interests as much as yours, Jack," she sniffed. "The divorce gave me forty percent of your holdings. It's my right."

It gave you fifty percent of my bank account, too, I thought.

"Besides, I wanted to be here for Spencer… as moral support." She picked at a long, pointy nail. "We're friends, Jack. And everyone needs someone… You certainly didn't waste any time."

Blake stuck his head into the hall. "We're ready." He looked from me to Elaine… then back to me.

I followed him in with Elaine on my heels. She sat down at the far end of the table. I didn't have the time to process what she'd just said. And she'd planned it that way. Her smile was serene. It was the way that she locked eyes with Spencer that struck me. That, and the look on his face when he saw her.

"Ed, thank you for this," I spoke to the room, but my words were sincere and directed only to him. "The board is here. Spencer too. Bill Jackson's listening in." I wanted to make it easier… the whole fucking mess was awkward enough. "There's been a mistake with the contract. The one we have here… I know you never had a chance to sign yourself." I turned to look at Spencer. "Mr. Pierson-Ellis and I have discussed this. I believe he has something he wants to say to everyone here."

Spencer stood unsteadily, grasping at the edge of the table for support. I'd have had some pity for the man, if what he'd done was in any way forgivable. But he'd betrayed everyone in the room. And it could have even cost us the company. For hell's sake, he'd put Warner in jeopardy as well.

"I… I… " He swallowed hard, his eyes darting around the room. "I never wanted to hurt anyone. It got out of control, is all." His eyes locked onto Elaine. "This wasn't how it was supposed to happen." He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I signed it myself. I forged the signature.

It was just because we needed a little more time…" He looked down at his own hands, the words were coming out faster and faster. "I'll face whatever consequences you choose. It was my mistake. Only mine." He looked across the long table. "It was never supposed to be like this…"