Chapter 1
Three minutes before the board vote, I hung up the call with the asset management department. My account showed 25 billion dollars had just been deposited.
On the stage, My ex-wife Emily Carter was adjusting the microphone, while Michael Reed poured her a glass of sparkling water. They were both smiling like they'd already conquered the world.
I sat in the back row, staring at the bank notification on my phone, then locked the screen.
Everything was going according to plan.
*****
The hallway outside the meeting room was quiet.
I leaned against the wall, and my phone lit up.
Emily texted me.
[David Grant, I'm telling you one last time. Sign the papers and leave today. Don't embarrass yourself.]
Three years ago, she wouldn't have talked to me like this.
Back then, she'd always end her texts with a period, still keeping things polite.
But now, it was a whole new story.
She'd locked down five out of seven board votes, and Michael had helped her win over two institutional investors. Half the management at Autonova Mobility had already been swapped out.
She had every right to talk tough now.
I glanced at the time.
Three minutes left until the board vote.
I dialed a number.
It was Alex Morgan, my asset manager for the past six years.
"Alex, sell all my Autonova Mobility shares. Right now," I said.
There was a brief pause on the other end.
"Mr. Grant, all of them?" Alex asked.
"All of them," I replied.
"The market's in a good mood today. The autonomous driving sector's up three points. You'll get a good price if you sell now. But selling everything at once will definitely draw attention," Alex said.
"Let it draw attention," I said.
Alex didn't ask any more questions.
"Once everything's sold, you should see about 25 billion dollars hit your account, give or take two hundred million," Alex said.
"Okay," I replied.
"I'll execute it now," Alex said.
The call ended.
I slipped my phone into my suit jacket and pushed open the door at the end of the hallway.
The meeting room was already packed.
The first three rows were for the board members and executives. The middle rows were for representatives from institutional investors. The last two rows were for observers.
My seat was at the very edge of the last row.
There was no nameplate, no meeting materials, just a bottle of mineral water on the table.
Emily sat right in the center of the stage.
She wore a dark gray suit, her hair in a high ponytail, looking sharp and cool, like a blade fresh from the grindstone.
Michael sat to her right.
When he saw me come in, he turned his head, his eyes barely paused on me before looking away.
I knew that look all too well.
It was the kind of look given to someone who's already been written off.
I sat down.
My phone buzzed in my pocket.
It was a message from Alex.
[First batch of sell orders filled. Progress: 12%.]
Someone in the front row glanced back at me.
It was Brian Foster, the vice president of marketing.
He quickly turned away, like I was contagious or something.
Three months ago, at a management meeting, he actually offered me a cigarette.
Back then, I was still the founder and chairman of Autonova Mobility.
Back then, everyone still called me Mr. Grant.
Back then, nobody called me that anymore.
The host on stage started the opening speech. I leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes for a moment.
I'd been waiting for this day for a long time.
Not because I wanted to be voted out.
I was just waiting for the market to rip off the last shiny veneer of this company.
Two months ago, I found a fatal flaw in Autonova Mobility's core algorithm.
This wasn't some freak scenario.
Whenever the lighting hit a certain angle and there was rain or fog, the visual recognition module kept making mistakes, over and over.
This wasn't just a glitch.
It was a blind spot in the underlying architecture.
I ran four independent tests. Every single time, the same problem popped up.
I brought up the idea of hitting pause on the L4 commercial rollout.
Emily said, "Our competitors already had licenses in three cities, and we couldn't afford to wait any longer."
Michael said, "We can always fix engineering issues during mass production."
The board was even more blunt.
"The market waits for no one, and neither does money," they said.
I finally understood.
When everyone was all-in on the same direction, the guy who said 'hold up' became the enemy.
*****
My phone buzzed again.
It was another message from Emily.
[Sign the authorization, and I'll say in the announcement that you're stepping down for personal reasons. That way, you can keep your dignity.]
I stared at the message.
I replied with just one word.
[Okay.]
Three seconds later, the read receipt popped up.
No reply.
She must have thought I had surrendered.
The host's voice drifted over.
"Next, let's welcome Ms. Emily Carter to deliver the annual work report."
Applause broke out.
Emily stood up, tilting her head slightly to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.
It was a tiny gesture.
But I could tell she was loving every second of it.
My phone buzzed again.
Alex texted: [28% sold.]
I placed my phone face down on the table.
From then on, every time Autonova Mobility's stock shot up, it had nothing to do with me.