Chapter 10 - Harry
Harry
Iwatched Mum storm towards me along the sunlight corridor in all her glory. Today it was an emerald pinstripe suit, matching heels that gave her a few inches on me, and her silver hair coiffed to perfection.
The only thing that ruined it was the scowl that permanently etched itself into her face ever since she had children. Her rare purple eyes were already filled with rage, but by the time we sat down in the boardroom, she would be all smiles and gentle laughs.
“Good afternoon, Mother,” I said as she screeched to a halt before me. “A lovely day for yet another board meeting, isn't it?”
I clutched the leather-bound folder to my chest, just in case she wildly grabbed it during our ‘conversation’.
I doubted she would go that far, but I never knew with her.
The last time my youngest sister, Jazz, returned home during a break from filming her blockbusters, Mum shattered an antique Ming vase in one of her piques of anger.
“You really think you’re going to get away with this, don’t you?” she hissed, not even bothering to greet me.
I looked at the heavy black double doors at the end of the corridor where the Board of Directors of The Fischer Foundation waited for us.
“If we’re talking about ‘getting away with it’,” I said as I countered her steely glare with a calm expression, “then it would be more apt to say that you have been ‘getting away with it’ for years before Grace noticed.”
The fact that I had openly mentioned Mum’s crimes didn’t deter her.
It was another one of the many Fischer scandals that had been swept under the rug in the name of preserving our family’s integrity.
We were only having this meeting because Mum had been using millions of Foundation funds to pay for her extravagant lifestyle.
My younger sister, Grace, had designed the entire security system for both The Fischer Foundation and the Fischer Group, run by our father, and she kept a fast eye on documents and transactions going in and out of both organisations.
It was Grace who discovered that Mum had been accepting donations under the table, funnelling them into a private account with no record that the payment had ever occurred.
It took Grace, Cat, and me three years and countless long nights of planning to get to this stage.
No hard looks or threats from Mum had me falter.
“That is entirely beside the point.” Mum continued. “There is not a chance I’m letting you take The Foundation from me.”
“Yes, yes.” I nodded sagely. “And you’re doing everything you can to stop me, and you won’t give up your position, and you are the rightful Head of The Foundation, and—”
“You are still my son!” she snapped, gritting her teeth. “You should not be treating me this way!”
Ten years ago, I would have bent under a single stony word from her, but too much had changed since then.
With her hands on her hips, back straight, chin level, even in her rage, she managed to hold herself. Poised, as a perfect Fischer should always be.
With the Directors on the other side of the door, we couldn’t give too much away, even though they knew we were at odds with each other. I was sure that was the only reason she wasn’t shouting.
“Mother, those funds were for clean water projects in Africa, hospitals in Southeast Asia, land preservation in the Middle East, ocean cleaning expeditions… I could go on and on. My point is, you don’t have the high ground here.
Even if the Directors back you up, there is no forgiving that you chose—you actively chose—to redirect money donated to benefit those with less than us, and spent it on baubles and champagne. ”
“It was for a good cause,” she said so casually that I snapped. Against my better judgement, my anger pushed through.
“Your social standing is not a good cause! And if you had any idea of how some people are forced to live, you would at least have the decency to be ashamed of yourself.”
My anger didn’t just stem from the way she had asked donors to deposit funds into her own bank account. It was the simple fact that she had bullied me and my sisters for years to uphold the Fischer image, all while doing that behind our backs.
“I have been running The Foundation since your grandmother died,” she spat back. “If I’m seen handing it over to you when I’m still perfectly capable of leadership, how will I look? What will that do to me?”
We kept her wrongdoings a secret from everyone but the board. They understood the need to uphold the image of the charity and the reputation of the Fischer family. As far as the world was concerned, Mum had taken me under her wing and spent years teaching me to run The Foundation.
But that was another issue altogether. She didn’t see The Foundation as a culmination of my grandmother’s life’s work. She was a world-famous actress who married the CEO of the most prominent conglomerate at the time, and The Fischer Foundation was just a bonus that was thrown in.
She didn’t respect that my grandmother had started and run The Foundation for over forty years before she passed. My grandmother was so deeply dedicated to its cause that she still asked about it even after her dementia took away most of her ability to speak.
Ten years had passed since her death, and it still stung deeply to talk of her like that with Mum. As Dad’s mother, Mum didn’t share the same kind of relationship with her as Dad and I. Which is one of a number of reasons why I fought so hard to take it from her.
“You’ve practically handed it to me already. I doubt your image will be a problem,” I replied dryly.
She folded her arms, looking down at me as best she could. “This was meant to be a part-time opportunity for you to gain business acumen. Not to steal the charity from me.”
We had had this conversation so many times I could practically follow the script, but I still let her get to me.
“You have no idea what you are doing,” she continued.
“You can barely gather enough donations to cover the running costs of The Foundation.” Her face slipped into one of those sharp smiles she gave when she caught traction.
“You would be nothing without me. You can’t even host The Foundation events without me.
One bad word from me and all those hundreds of donors will disappear. ”
“Aah.” I tilted my chin, giving her a look of mock surprise. “You mean a bad word about how my own mother embezzled funds from a global non-profit and I stepped in? Leaving a career I trained nine years for, all to do damage control for you?”
I took a quick breath, swallowing down the desire to let go and shout at her about how truly twisted her actions were. But I’d already done that at least twice within the past year, and it had made no difference. Every crack in my composure was another win for her.
“Please don’t act like you have the high ground here, mother. There are plenty of people who can replace you. I heard that Lily Collins is interested in the role. Maybe I should give her a call? I’m sure she and Bunny would do a fantastic job in your stead.”
Mum reeled back, her nostrils flaring. The colour drained from her already porcelain face as she realised what it would do to her if the two of them replaced her.
Theodore Collins was one of the members who strongly opposed my leadership role but if I introduced his daughter and his new wife into the mix, I’m sure his vote could be swayed.
“You wouldn’t dare,” she whispered.
“I most definitely would dare.” I straightened my back, meeting her eyes.
“You’re the one who pushed me to this.” And she was why I had to give up my passion in medicine, working with real people in a tense environment that satisfied my soul.
The Foundation kept me trapped behind a desk, attending meetings, giving presentations, hosting parties.
And the only results I saw came in the form of reports or marketing videos of the difference The Foundation made to people globally.
I sighed deeply, my tone softening. “Mother, I am asking you nicely. Please don’t get in my way. You’ve taught us enough to know I’m not playing games. I’ve cleaned up your messes for years. Don’t make this harder for both of us.”
I couldn’t allow her to frustrate me further. The final vote for the new Head of The Fischer Foundation was in three weeks. I simply needed to hold on until then. After that, I could finally, truly relax.
“Anyway,” I cleared my throat. “We have a meeting to attend.” My threat should be enough to stem her loudest objections. Though she would still find a way to nitpick, she wouldn’t take any major risks with that hanging over her head. I hoped.
If there was one thing my mum loved, it was her position in society. Especially more than her children. It was why she began embezzling in the first place.
Her scowl deepened as I walked past her.
Had we been alone, she would have shouted some grand statement to have the last word.
Though she hadn’t acted in films for years, she still kept her dramatic flair.
She may lose control around us at home, but God forbid anyone outside the family discover her true character.
I reached the large doors to the boardroom, taking a quick breath before stepping inside. I instantly met the gazes of the twelve people who would decide my future, the future of The Foundation, and the future of my family.