Dad read slowly, and his face went gray. The last page showed that Brooke had signed his name on the loan guarantee for the Dayton deal without his knowledge, hiding the warehouse losses to push the sale through. She had told him the numbers were clean. Dad looked at his daughter for a long moment and asked if it was true. Brooke could not answer.

I told them I had not bought the shares for revenge. I bought them because I watched the company sink and wanted to save the business Dad built. The board voted that afternoon to suspend the Dayton deal, remove Brooke from her post pending review, and bring in an independent auditor. Dad signed every paper with a shaking hand.

Mom cried quietly and apologized, saying they had mistaken my silence for failure. Dad said nothing for a long time, then told me he had been wrong about my instincts, and wrong to say it. I accepted it, and I did not hurry to say it was fine.

Within a year, the company stabilized under new leadership, and I took a seat on the board while keeping my job at the chain. Brooke repaid what she owed and worked her way back from the warehouse floor. Every Easter now, I sit at the head of the same table, and nobody laughs at what I do.