Page 81 of The Omega Switch: Part 2

I shook my head. “Stop. Just stop.” My tone was so final that it finally made them quiet. “I’m offering to buy out your shares. What I do with the company afterward is not your concern. And with the money you receive, you can keep a roof over your head until you find some other way to make money that doesn’t involve profiting off of my labor.” It felt so good to finally put them in their place.

George took a breath, his face strained as if he was holding himself back from yelling. A quick whisper from his lawyer set him straight.

“Ivy, you’ve left us no choice.” He said, and he almost looked like he was going to cry. I sat back, scoffing at his words. The audacity of their words now, after all those years of neglect and torment, came rushing back to me. I shook my head, almost laughing at their absurd attempts to make me feel bad.

“You had choices! You could have put my name on the patents." I said, and they had the decency to look somewhat ashamed. I went on, my voice angry but controlled. "You could have acknowledged my ownership after Mom died. You could have paid me appropriately, and given me access to my own damn bank accounts. For Pete’s sake, you could have stopped Arabella from stealing credit for my work. And you could have chosen not to force me to lie under duress with your bark.” They sat back suddenly, glancing at their lawyers. I took one last look at them, feeling not anger anymore, but a type of sad pity.

"And most of all, you could have treated me like your daughter," I said finally.

The anger drained out of my father’s face. And for a brief moment, another look flashed across it - shame. But then it disappeared. I guess that having the truth spelled out in front of other people finally made them embarrassed.

I took another breath, feeling calmer now. "You had choices. You made them. And now, you have to face the consequences.”

Their attorney quietly cleared his throat. "I think it would be best if we get back to the financial terms now."

My lawyer leaned over the table. “This is the best offer you’ll get. If you don’t take it, we’ll be asking for more.”

That shut them up. And the truth was, I could ask for so much more. For all these years, they'd acted like I should feel fortunate just to be allowed my little lab. My mother built Nestwell, and after she died, I'd been slowly pushed out, almost to the point where they took over it completely. But not quite.

They knew about my ownership interest but never told me. Unfortunately for them, Hunter Vale was incapable of leaving anything unexamined once he got involved.

My lawyer slid another page across the table. "As we've explained, our client will not be allowing her patented products to be sold by you. And given her inherited equity stake, the cleanest resolution remains the buyout proposal we've presented."

My father's face was red with anger. But my offer was fair. I wasn't stealing the company from anyone; I was offering to buy it. It was hard to process, even now. A year ago, I barely had access to my own bank accounts. Now I was buying a company - the one that was destined to be mine, and should have been all along. Nestwell existed because of my mother’s vision to help solve problems for people. And I wanted to further that cause.

Their attorney eventually leaned toward them and spoke quietly. My father whispered something back. George shook his head, and Aaron stared down at the table for nearly a full minute. Eventually, my father gave a defeated order.

"Do it."

Their attorney turned to us and spoke. "My clients are prepared to accept the terms."

I felt my heart race, but inside, I was beaming. My father looked at me, a sneer on his face now.

"Good luck. You’ll need it. And when you run the whole thing into the ground, we’ll be here waiting to pick up the pieces!” He practically spat at me. But nothing he said had any effect on me anymore.

"No." That word, which had been so hard to say before, and almost impossible at times, was so easy to say now. "No. I’ll be just fine." I said.

My attorneys took over. Everything started happening faster than I realized, and papers were being passed around for signatures. When the final document reached me, I stared at the signature line. But before signing, I looked across the table.

"There is one last thing I want," I said. My fathers stiffened immediately.

"What?"

"I want to come to the house," I said.

George frowned. "Why?"

"Because there are a few things left in my old room that belonged to Mom.” My throat tightened. "Her perfume case, a few photographs. Little things. Oh, and my dresser.” I said, remembering looking at the paintings we’d made on them when I was in that tiny room. I hadn't taken much when I'd escaped. "I want those." My fathers looked surprised.

"That's all?" Aaron asked. I nodded. Maybe they expected something else, but those little things mattered more to me than money or revenge.

"Alright. We can arrange a time for you to get them," George finally said.

"Thank you," I said, then I signed the papers. My lawyers read over the paperwork.

"Well, business here is concluded," one of them said.

My fathers stood, one by one. They looked older now, more beaten down. My father looked at me.