The elevator doors opened smoothly on the twelfth floor of the federal plaza building.
William walked down the plush carpeted hallway with Noah on his left and Margaret on his right.
Two armed federal marshals followed close behind them, their faces set in stern expressions.
William: Keep your head held high, Margaret. You are the rightful heir to this entire firm.
Margaret: My heart is pounding so fast, Dad.
William: Just watch me handle this.
William pushed open the heavy oak double doors of the main executive boardroom without knocking.
Inside, six corporate board members sat around a polished glass table, listening to a woman in a sharp grey suit.
Victoria stopped mid-sentence, her dry-erase marker freezing against the whiteboard as her eyes landed on Margaret.
Victoria: What is the meaning of this interruption?! William, we are in the middle of a strategic audit!
William: The audit is over, Victoria. Permanently.
Victoria: Who authorized you to bring strangers into a confidential executive meeting?
William: Look closer at these strangers, Victoria. Take a very good look.
Victoria's eyes darted from Margaret to Noah, her face turning pale as she dropped her marker onto the floor.
Victoria: Margaret...? No... This is impossible. You're... you're not supposed to be here.
Margaret: I'm alive, Victoria. Despite every single lie you told me ten years ago.
Victoria: William, get this woman out of here! She is unstable! She abandoned her family years ago!
William: SHUT YOUR MOUTH, VICTORIA!
William slammed his hand down onto the glass table, making the water glasses rattle.
William: You forged legal restraining orders, you falsified missing person reports, and you stole four million dollars from my grandson's trust fund!
Board Member 1: Four million dollars?! William, what are you talking about?
William: Victoria presented forged death certificates to this board seven years ago to claim Margaret's inheritance!
Victoria: That's a lie! I have all the legal paperwork signed by the county clerk!
Federal Marshal: Victoria Vance, also known as Victoria Sterling, stay where you are!
The marshal stepped forward, pulling a set of steel handcuffs from his tactical belt.
Victoria: You can't touch me! I have power of attorney over this entire estate!
William: Power of attorney granted through fraudulent death declarations is completely void under federal law!
Noah stepped up beside his mother, pointing at Victoria's hand.
Noah: Look, Mom! She has the matching box on her desk!
On the corner of the executive desk sat a small mahogany box with gold brass latches.
Margaret walked over to the desk, picking up the box and holding it tightly against her chest.
Margaret: This was my mother's jewelry box. You stole this from my bedroom the night you chased me away.
Victoria: Put that back! That's corporate property!
Federal Marshal: Turn around and place your hands behind your back, ma'am!