My Brother Mocked My “Broke” Artsy Life At His $140k Wedding. He Didn’t Realize I Own 81% Of His Company, And I Just Fired Him The Morning After. Am I The Jerk For Ending His Career During His Honeymoon?
Richard interrupted, gesturing to the chairs.
*”Sit down, Marcus.”*
I took a seat at the opposite end of the table from Marcus. The board members watched with careful expressions, already briefed on what was about to unfold.
Marcus remained standing.
*”Someone want to tell me what this is about? I got your email saying Blackwell Capital owns 81% of my company’s voting shares. That’s impossible. I personally secured every major investor. I know exactly who has equity in this firm.”*
*”Do you?”*
I asked quietly.
He looked at me, irritated.
*”Sarah, I know you’re trying to be supportive, but the adults need to talk business right now. Maybe Richard can call you an Uber.”*
*”Sit down, Marcus,”*
Richard said, his tone brooking no argument.
Something in Richard’s voice made Marcus pause. He looked around the table at the board members, none of whom were meeting his eyes. Slowly, he sank into his chair.
*”Marcus,”*
Richard began,
*”what do you know about Blackwell Capital Management?”*
*”They’re a family office or consortium that invested $162 million in Hartley Investment Group during our series of funding. European-based, I thought. Anonymous investors who wanted passive involvement.”*
*”Incorrect,”*
Richard said.
*”Blackwell Capital Management is a private investment firm based in New York. It’s been operating for ten years, managing a portfolio currently valued at approximately $340 million.”*
*”The principal investor and sole decision maker is sitting at this table.”*
Marcus’s eyes darted around the room.
*”Which one of you?”*
*”Me,”*
I said.
The silence that followed was absolute. Marcus stared at me. Then he laughed, a short, disbelieving bark.
*”That’s not funny, Sarah.”*
*”It’s not a joke,”*
I said.
I opened my portfolio and slid a document across the table.
*”This is the corporate structure of Blackwell Capital Management. That’s my signature as founder and principal. These are the incorporation documents from ten years ago.”*
Marcus picked up the papers, his hands shaking slightly.
*”This is… no. No. This is some kind of mistake. You don’t have this kind of money. You’re a freelance designer living in Brooklyn.”*
*”I’m a private investor who also does freelance design work,”*
I corrected.
*”The design work is a hobby. The investing is my actual career.”*
*”That’s impossible. Where would you get $340 million?”*
*”I started with $500 ten years ago. Made some good investments in undervalued tech companies. Reinvested the returns. Compound growth over a decade.”*
Richard slid another document across the table.
*”These are the investment records, Marcus. Every transaction, every return, every acquisition, all verified by our legal team.”*
Marcus was flipping through papers frantically.
*”But you asked me to explain stocks to you at Thanksgiving. You said you didn’t understand compound interest.”*
*”I lied,”*
I said simply.
*”I’ve been lying for ten years. It was easier than dealing with the family’s reaction.”*
*”So you’ve been secretly rich this entire time?”*
*”While we all thought you were struggling?”*
*”While you all insisted I was struggling,”*
I corrected.
*”I never said I was. You all just assumed.”*
## The Price of Ego
One of the board members, Patricia Chin from Sterling Ventures, cleared her throat.
*”Mr. Hartley, perhaps we should focus on the matter at hand: the cryptocurrency investment.”*
Marcus’ face went red.
*”Don’t tell me this is about that. The crypto mining operation is a solid opportunity. 24% projected annual returns.”*
*”Run by a man with a fake Stanford degree,”*
I said, sliding another document across the table.
*”Our legal team did a background check. His name isn’t even real. The entire operation is a Ponzi scheme. You were about to wire $30 million into a fraud operation.”*
*”That’s not—I vetted him. He had references.”*
*”Fake references,”*
Patricia said.
*”From fake companies. If you’d done proper due diligence—”*
*”I did do due diligence!”*
Marcus slammed his hand on the table.
*”I’ve been doing this for 20 years. I worked at Goldman Sachs. I know how to evaluate investments.”*
*”You’ve been CEO of this firm for six months,”*
Richard said quietly.
*”And in that time, you’ve lost $47 million on seven failed investments. The board voted against the cryptocurrency deal, but you sent an email to all investors last night claiming board approval. That’s fraud, Marcus.”*
The color drained from Marcus’s face.
*”I was going to get approval. I just needed to convince you all that—”*
*”You lied to investors,”*
I said.
*”You misrepresented a board decision to close a deal you knew was rejected. That’s securities fraud. If that wire transfer had gone through, you’d be facing criminal charges.”*
Marcus looked at me like he was seeing me for the first time.
*”You’re behind this. You’re trying to sabotage me.”*
*”I’m trying to save the company. Your company. The one you’re destroying with reckless decisions and ego-driven investments.”*
*”Ego-driven?”*
He laughed bitterly.
*”This is rich coming from you. You’ve been sitting on hundreds of millions of dollars, lying to the family, playing some kind of sick game.”*
*”I wasn’t playing a game. I was protecting my privacy and building a successful investment career while you all dismissed me as incompetent.”*
*”We never dismissed you—”*
*”Marcus,”*
I kept my voice level.
*”Yesterday at your wedding, you told your guests I didn’t know the first thing about money. You’ve spent ten years explaining basic financial concepts to me like I’m a child.”*
*”Mom tells people I tried to run a business but failed. Dad introduces me as the creative one with a tone that makes it clear I’m the family disappointment.”*
*”That’s not… we were just being honest about what you believed.”*
*”I finished and I let you believe it because it was easier than explaining that I’d built an investment portfolio worth more than Dad’s entire retirement fund by the time I was 26.”*
## The Verdict
Another board member, James Whitmore—yes, Emma’s father—spoke up.
*”Marcus, I think we need to address the immediate issue. Miss Hartley, as majority shareholder, what action do you want to take?”*
Marcus’ head snapped toward James.
*”Wait, you knew about this? You knew Sarah was the majority shareholder?”*
*”I learned this morning,”*
James said carefully.
*”Along with everyone else.”*
*”But you’re on her side! You’re all on her side!”*
Marcus looked wildly around the table.
*”This is a coup! You’re trying to steal my company!”*
*”It’s not your company,”*
