The Red Switch
Chapter 06 - The Red Switch
The silence in the boat house turned suffocating. The only sound was the gentle lapping of river water against the wooden dock and the distant wail of police sirens across the estate grounds.
Senator Vance’s hand holding the revolver began to tremble slightly. The cold, arrogant smile on Victoria’s face completely evaporated.
“You’re bluffing...” Senator Vance stammered, his voice losing its supreme composure. “Your father would never risk exposing the company! It would destroy Cole International’s stock value!”
“I told you, Richard,” Nathan said, his voice ringing with absolute, unyielding conviction. “I don't care about the company. I don't care about the money. The only thing I care about is my daughter and her mother.”
Nathan slowly raised his thumb over the glowing red button.
“Press it, Nathan!” Victoria screamed frantically at her father. “Shoot him! He’s lying!”
“Shut up, Victoria!” Senator Vance barked, sweat breaking out across his forehead. He knew the late elder Cole better than anyone—the old man was paranoid, meticulous, and always kept a secondary ledger to protect himself from his business partners.
If Nathan pressed that button, Senator Vance wasn't just facing political ruin; he was facing a life sentence in a federal maximum-security prison for treason and corporate racketeering.
“What do you want, Nathan?” Senator Vance asked, his voice shaking as he slowly lowered his revolver.
“First,” Nathan commanded, “you are going to call your police chief right now and publicly retract the fake kidnapping story about Grace.”
Senator Vance swallowed hard, pulling out his personal phone. “Done. What else?”
“Second,” Nathan continued, stepping onto the motorboat while keeping his thumb firmly pressed against the remote, “you are going to surrender your thirty percent voting proxy in Cole International to Mr. Vance by midnight tonight.”
“That’s thirty percent of my entire family wealth!” Victoria shrieked in protest.
“Then your father can spend the rest of his life in prison,” Nathan replied flatly, raising his thumb higher over the button.
“OKAY! OKAY!” Senator Vance yelled frantically, waving his hand at his security guards to lower their rifles. “I’ll sign the proxy transfer! Just put the device away!”
Nathan stepped onto the speed boat beside Grace and Marcus. Marcus immediately fired up the twin high-performance engines, sending a deep, powerful rumble echoing across the water.
Nathan looked down at Senator Vance one last time, his eyes cold and unyielding.
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“If I see you, your daughter, or your security guards near Grace or Lily ever again,” Nathan warned, “I won't call you. I’ll just press the button.”
Marcus slammed the throttle forward. The boat surged across the dark water, leaving a trail of white foam in the moonlight as the estate vanished into the thick river fog behind them.
