Katherine's

POV

My gaze moved over everyone's shocked facial expression as they heard my words.

Everyone looked puzzled, and I could read the unspoken questions about what happened on the financial side that were so serious that I would bluntly fire the chief financial officer.

My gaze landed on John. He looked more shocked than the rest. His gaze landed on the reports in my hand, his face whitening in the process.

"What's wrong, Uncle John?" I asked as I read his surprised expression, and he smiled lightly. "Are you surprised that I fired the chief financial officer, or are you surprised that I have this financial statement in my hand?"

I guess John's surprise gaze was because of the latter.

I cleared my throat and continued.

I started to explain the current data and my future objectives.

My ideas are easier to accept by the board than what John suggests, as they fill a certain gap in the current market trend.

At the end of the presentation, I was rewarded with applause, and those who were skeptical about me started to show admiration.

I watched John's face darken as he pinned his gaze on me. He had this dark aura surrounding him, and his gaze snapped toward Sarah, who kept her head down; she didn't dare to look up. I guess Sarah was in trouble with John again. I hope he won't hurt her. The conference room's door was suddenly kicked open, and the doors slammed against the walls with force.

Duncan walked in, his face red from anger. He grabbed whatever he could get his hands on and threw it my way.

I ducked out of the way just in time when he grabbed a coffee mug and threw it at me.

"Who gave you the power to have me fired like that, little girl?" Duncan roared. "You have no right! I helped build this company before you were even in your mother's womb. Now you want to fire me!"

I did expect Duncan to get angry, but I didn't like the idea that he would bring my parents into the conversation.

"You want me to tell you why I fired you?" I asked coldly, and the atmosphere inside the room suddenly turned cold. "Do you want me to remind you of what you have done? Do you want everyone around this table to know?"

I watched as everyone around me shivered like they were cold.

Duncan wasn't one to back down, and he was trying to be domineering while acting arrogant.

He ignored my questions and continued with his insults.

"Do you think I am afraid of you, little girl? You are nothing, not even worth my time," he said with a cold snort, turned around, and rushed toward the exit.

"Stop!" I ordered, feeling my aura expand around me, and someone whimpered inside the room.

Duncan shook his head, trying hard to ignore the order, but he bowed his head and pushed forward.

"In the third quarter of last year, you made payments to a company called New Majestic Trading, project file numbers 82256 and 89454; should I call them all up?" Duncan froze in his spot when he heard the file numbers and slowly looked back at me. His face turned gray, and a worried expression followed.

"Could you explain why you would accept a price of $85 for a simple item we could get for $25? Also, explain to the board why you, as CFO, accepted the project from an unfamiliar company in the first place-if we have suppliers that are more cost-effective." John was sweating in his seat. He looked worried that I would expose him as well.

Seeing the horrified expressions on both their faces, I continued.

"In your monthly report last month for this quarter, the financial summary figures were correct, but according to the tax we paid, it should be three million less."

My statement shocked everyone, and the board members were all sitting with expressions of disbelief.

"All the directors are all here now; do you want to defend yourself, Director Duncan? If I am wrong, I will apologize here and now and withdraw my resolution."

The directors were all glaring at the reports in their hands. They only looked at the profits that they made and never took the time to study the reports. They blindly accepted everything that John and the CFO were feeding them and never studied the reports. If only they had picked it up months ago-if they knew that we had lost at least fifty million in profits-they wouldn't be this calm.

Duncan was visibly trembling on his spot. I wasn't sure if it was out of anger or fear.

"Director Duncan, care to explain Ms. King's accusations?" One of the directors asked, furious at what I had just said.

Director Duncan's gaze landed on John, and his eyes cried out, seeking help, but when John ignored him, he rolled his eyes and immediately took countermeasures. When the Director saw Duncan's attitude, he lost his temper and threw his coffee cup against the wall, standing up.

The rest of the board fell silent in shock.

John suddenly jumped up and rushed forward toward Duncan, grabbed him around the neck, and growled.

"I trusted you!" He spat the words in Duncan's face. "How could you do such a thing!? How would I ever be able to trust you again?"

Although the directors were stunned by John's sudden action, Duncan broke down in sobs and explained his reasons.

"I'm sorry," he whimpered. "I didn't want to betray you. You know that my daughter was seriously ill last year! I had no choice. The doctors couldn't help her, and I needed to get her treatment to save her. I couldn't bear to lose her; she is only three years old. You can do whatever you want with me! I know I did wrong, but I beg of you, please don't tell my daughter."

I silently watched the scene with great interest.

Even though the people present at the meeting were upset and angry about the money, they couldn't help but sympathize with Director Duncan.

If I didn't know the truth, I might have believed that what he said was real.

"You can go," John said, and he acted like he cared, waving his hand. "I will let someone else take care of the accounts and the payments... After all, you have worked for us for decades and have worked hard without any credit. You don't have to pay it back." The directors growled in their seats, yet John continued, wiped a stray tear from his eyes, and looked at Duncan.

"You can go. If my brother was still alive, he would have understood the situation, and he would have let you go."

As soon as John said that, my heart clenched hurtfully in my chest, and the directors around me went silent again. I couldn't believe how manipulative John could be.

Did he use my father's name often to get away with murder?

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