As the shareholders filed out of the meeting room, the tension in the air was palpable. Victoria trailed behind the others, her face flushed with anger. She felt the pit in her stomach grow wider once again. She thought of what Franklin would think of her if he knew what she did.“I’m absolutely pathetic,” she murmured to herself. Now that she thought of it, it was for the best that Amelia wasn’t present during the meeting to see her be weak and vote for Kent once again.She felt like a traitor. Like she was betraying Franklin, betraying Amelia, and betraying Jason. But most of all, she felt as though she was betraying herself. Each time she let Roland do what he pleased and get his way, and each time she did his bidding, she lost a part of herself, and she knew that sooner rather than later, he would pick away at the final piece of herself and leave her with absolutely nothing.A shiver went down her spine at the thought. At that moment all she wanted to do was run away and hide fro
Jason’s heart pounded as the prison van pulled up to the towering gates of the county jail. The metallic clang of the gates closing behind him sent a shiver down his spine. The nostalgia hit him like a bus once they reached the jail. Memories of his first conviction began to flood his mind so vividly that it was like he was living it for the first time. But he reminded himself that it wasn’t like before. Unlike before, now he had a good lawyer and others working on his case. He wasn’t the good-for-nothing son-in-law anymore, and he’d make sure that Stefan and everyone else knew that. He tried to hold on to those things for strength as he was escorted from the van into the processing area. Inside, the fluorescent lights cast a harsh glow on the drab surroundings. Guards stood at every corner, their watchful eyes never missing a movement. Jason was led to the intake counter, where a gruff officer began the routine. “Name?” the officer barked. “Jason Grey,” he replied, his voic
Amelia took a deep breath and answered, “As of today, Kent is the interim president of the Elysian Syndicate.”Jason’s fists clenched, and he clenched his jaw. The news felt like a blow straight to his core. But though it was not ideal for Jason that Kent was now president, it didn’t surprise him that Kent took the opportunity.“Of course he is,” Jason scoffed.Amelia’s eyes widened slightly. “You don’t seem surprised.”“Of course, I'm not. Even though I don’t like it, I knew Kent would take the opportunity now that I'm locked up here. Although I admit he was pretty damn quick to Jason heaved a sigh. It felt like everything was slipping out of his hands, and he couldn’t let that happen. He needed to find a way to turn the situation around.And just then, Jason remembered the night that Christopher called him about Lana not feeling well. That night, after they put Lana to bed, Kent came over to Sinclair's home and was excited about the elections and his winning them.Jason’s eyes lit u
Connor sat at the bar, a satisfied grin on his face as he ended the call. "I'll let you know the next steps soon," he said, his voice tinged with excitement. He slipped his phone into his pocket, revelling in the aftermath of his plan. Timothy's coma was a stroke of brilliance, and everything was falling into place.Jake, the bartender, noticed Connor's unusually cheerful demeanour. "You seem awfully happy tonight,” he remarked. “What’s got you so excited about drinking medicine booze in a rundown bar in Queens?" he scoffed, wiping down the counter.Connor chuckled, taking a sip of his drink. "You need to stop being so pessimistic, Jakey; maybe then you’ll be able to have a smile as big as this." Connor flashed Jake a mockingly bright smile.Before Jake could respond, the door swung open, and four men entered. Despite their efforts to blend in with their casual clothing, Connor recognised them instantly: Kent, Roland, and Andrew. They made their way to the private area, their presence
The next day, Amelia arrived early at the Elysian Syndicate, and her mind raced with Jason's instructions. As she made her way to her office, she couldn't shake the unease that had settled in her stomach since Kent's announcement as president the day before.Once inside, she immediately set to work, attempting to log into the company's accounts. Her fingers flew over the keyboard, but each attempt was met with the same frustrating message: "Access Denied.""What the hell? I use these passwords all the time; why isn't it working now?" she muttered under her breath, trying again with no luck. Frustration mounting, she slammed her hands on the desk.Suddenly, the door swung open, and Roland strolled in, a smug smile plastered on his face. “Good morning, Amelia dear,” Roland greeted her in a sing-song voice.Seeing Roland in her office was irritating enough, and with the added frustration of the passwords not working, she snapped at him, “What the hell do you want, Roland?”"How cruel,”
Roland entered Kent's office with a smirk on his face. He couldn't wait to share the news about Amelia's downfall. He bounced with pride as he walked, excited to share the news of how he humiliated Amelia and claimed his office. He opened the door to Kent’s office and found him engrossed in paperwork."Guess who just claimed his office as Vice President," Roland chuckled.Kent barely glanced up, his expression unreadable. "By the stupid smile on your face, I don’t have to guess; I know it’s you. There’s no time for your gloating right now; there’s much more pressing matters to address."Roland's smirk faded. "Which are?"Kent leaned back in his chair, fixing Roland with a stern gaze. "Drugging the old man. We need him to sign those shares to us soon, so his drugs have to be switched today; and you, Roland, are going to do it."Roland's eyes widened. He knew that Kent would enlist him to handle the hardest part of it, but he didn’t know it would happen so soon.“But how am I-“Kent cut
Roland’s heart raced as he slipped into Mr. Harrington’s office. The quiet hum of the building and the ticking of a clock heightened his anxiety. “Damn Kent thinks I’m his errand boy,” Roland mumbled under his breath.He approached the large mahogany desk. He took out his cell phone from his pocket and took a picture of the desk so he could refer to it and make sure that he put everything back as it was once we were done.On the left side of the desk, Harrington’s medication was neatly lined up: prescription bottles labelled with Harrington’s name and dosage instructions.Roland’s hands trembled slightly as he picked up the first bottle. He carefully checked the label, making sure he identified the correct medication. He had brought an identical-looking bottle containing the tainted pills.His breath quickened as he unscrewed the cap, glancing nervously at the door. Every second counts. He had to make the switch flawlessly and quickly.As Roland was about to make the switch, he heard
That day at the prison, while Roland and Kent were working swiftly to achieve their agenda at the Elysian Syndicate, Jason was at work in the prison kitchen with Wylie.“By the way, Jason, what are you in for? didn’t get to ask you yesterday,” Wylie said as he dried off the dish that Jason passed to him.Jason sighed "Murder, but I...”“Let me guess, you didn’t do it." Wylie scoffed, completing Jason’s sentence in a sarcastic tone, “Same story as everyone else.”Jason rolled his eyes “It’s not a story,” Jason said as he scrubbed a pot. “I was at the wrong place at the wrong time. And I’m certain that it was a set-up,” he explained. As he recorded the story, he felt rage rise inside him, and he began to scrub the pot with vigor. His hands gripped the sponge tighter. The pot he was scrubbing trembled in his grasp, and the suds that once glided smoothly over the surface were now being worked into a furious lather."Jesus, don’t take it out of the pot, bro." Wylie laughed. “Well, assuming