Chapter 16 - PROJECT CROWN
The answer was buried inside Evelyn's encrypted files.
Federal investigators recovered only fragments.
Simon helped connect them.
PROJECT CROWN was not about company control in the traditional sense.
It was about access.
My company provided cloud-security infrastructure to major healthcare systems, banks, and government contractors.
Not classified systems.
But sensitive ones.
Vendor relationships.
Procurement structures.
Security architecture.
Acquisition plans.
Evelyn had spent years positioning herself to influence which companies we bought and which vendors we trusted.
Victor's firms had investments in several of those vendors.
The financial opportunity was enormous.
But Daniel believed money was only part of it.
“Control the vendor.”
“Influence the acquisition.”
“Shape the security structure.”
“You gain information nobody else has.”
I stared at the diagrams.
“So they wanted me as CEO.”
“Or someone they could control near the CEO.”
Ryan.
Evelyn.
Me.
Whichever route worked.
The network treated human relationships like infrastructure.
If one pathway failed, they built another.
Then we found a file dated three weeks before New Year's.
It was titled BENNETT TRANSITION.
Inside was a proposed timeline.
JANUARY: DOMESTIC INSTABILITY EVENT.
FEBRUARY: MEDICAL LEAVE.
MARCH: BOARD CONCERNS.
APRIL: SUCCESSION REMOVAL.
I felt physically cold.
The dinner had not spiraled out of control.
Not entirely.
The conflict itself had been planned.
Grant was supposed to provoke me.
Ryan was supposed to restrain me.
Brooke was supposed to record me.
The burn may have been impulsive.
But everything around it was designed.
They wanted an instability event.
I called Ryan.
He answered immediately.
“You found the timeline.”
“You knew?”
“I saw part of it.”
“When?”
“Two weeks before New Year's.”
My chest tightened.
“And you still helped them.”
Ryan began crying.
I had never heard him cry like that.
“I thought they were going to stage an argument.”
“You held me.”
“I know.”
“You helped your father.”
“I know.”
“You let them use my pregnancy against me.”
“I know.”
I wanted to scream.
Instead, I asked quietly, “Why?”
“Because Evelyn said if I didn't, she would expose everything I'd done.”
“You mean the fraud.”
“Yes.”
“So you sacrificed me to protect yourself.”
Silence.
“Yes.”
That single word ended whatever tiny fragment of sympathy remained.
“Where are you?”
Ryan hesitated.
“Why?”
“Because investigators are looking for you.”
“I know.”
“Turn yourself in.”
“I can't.”
“Then don't call me again.”
“Claire.”
I almost disconnected.
“Wait.”
I said nothing.
“I found something before I left Dad.”
“What?”
“A second Crown file.”
“Where?”
“I don't have it.”
“Who does?”
Ryan whispered, “Marcus.”
My heart sank.
“He's still in Colorado.”
“How do you know?”
“Because he contacted me.”
“What does he want?”
May you like
Ryan took a shaky breath.
“To trade the file for you.”
