Queen Of Shadows : Glory And Infamy

3

As Caroline turned 20 years old, she was officially allowed into the business with her grandfather's consent.

She started working in the finance department of the company, where she would make customer order and finance lists, collect revenues, pay the daily wage workers, etc.

Along with this, she would also go around the factory site, checking and understanding other operations in the factory.

A month had passed since Caroline had joined the factory She was now in charge of the shipment department and went around surveying the containers in which exports were sent. The containers in which the export was taken were often filled with boxes and crates that didn't have the identification of the company. These boxes looked similar unless they were carefully looked at.

She didnt know what they consisted of but never dared to ask about it.

Three months later,

On turning 21, Caroline was officially let into the business and allowed to monitor and control it as she was a part of the board of directors of the firm.

Thats when she started digging through the records and documents. Without informing anyone, she went through all the past files and worked overtime to map through everything.

She snuck through her grandpa's library and rummaged through the old shelves in the hope of finding something or another. After many desperate attempts, she was ready to give up on her search to find out about the mystery packages and the shipment.

Until one day she came across a rusty old small glass cabinet in the darkest end of the library. It piqued her interest, and she started examining it. On carefully opening the squeaky rust lock of the cabinet and brushing away the dust, she found out old contracts for the Chapman industries.

Going through the files, a particular black file has multiple bond papers and signatures from both her grandpa and father. The document was similar to a liability holding document that showed a processed loaned money arrangement from some organisation called "Dark Horse" towards "The Chapman's," and the terms had five points of agreement in exchange for the asked amount of $1 million.

These points are stated:

1. A representative from their firm would be a part of Chapman's and would hold a major position.

2. Their shipments must be delivered under the name of Chapman's and the company's containers.

3. They would have a 0.5% share of the profits earned.

4. This agreement will be continued even after the entire loaned amount is paid.

5. The Chapman's could be a part of their organisation if they ever wish to

If any of these weren't followed or the contract was tried to be cancelled after the payment, there would be gruesome consequences.

Eventually she found out that along with the corn and soybean business, her grandpa also exported illegal stuff, which consisted of narcotics, liquor, arms, and ammunition, to certain countries.

Initially, this came as a shockwave for her. The disclosure of it was enough to cause sleepless nights for her by analysing if it was too late to break free from the monstrosity they are webbed into.

But then, after looking at the risk of interfering in this business, she felt she should stay away from it.

When she also found out that they had set up an orphanage in which they would take the children of extremely poor families that have two or more children, further setting the children up for adoption.

In exchange, the family would be given a wholesome amount of money.
These children would be adopted by people from across the globe.

She thought that this was a good idea until she found out that most of the kids picked out were mostly working as househelps, left abandoned, or used for illegal practices.

After finding out in-depth about all of this, Carolina couldn't hold herself back.

With tears in her eyes and rage in her mind and the contract and papers in her hand, she went off to confront her grandpa.

"This is what we've been doing for years? This is what has bought us much wealth too. Why did we have to do this?"

Her grandpa replied, My dear girl, this has been going on for years...

If you try and interfere in this arrangement now, it may be a really devastating outcome for us, for the sake of yourself, me, or at least the Chapman industry.

Do not try to stop these illicit businesses that have been running for years. If you try to do so, one of us, or perhaps you, me, and your grandma, may end up like your father and mother. Your father, he was a good man; it wasn't his fault. They killed him because he tried to oppose them by finding out the material they were snucking into other countries through us.

Caroline stood and shook on hearing her grandpas statement. With tears running down her eyes and all that she had heard, she was determined to stop this for once and for all...