The elevator finally stopped at the highest floor, and all three men stepped out.The highest floor of the Elysian Syndicate was the pinnacle of prestige. Once they stepped out of the elevator, they were greeted by a spacious reception area that was adorned with minimalist pieces and luxurious furnishings. The floor-to-ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the city and coloured the room with natural light. Only the top members of the Elysian Syndicate were seen on the floor, save for the receptionists. Jason knew that Kent and Roland were about to be rude to him since he was on this floor. He smiled to himself at the irony.Kent and Roland looked at Jason with confusion and annoyance etched across their faces as he walked behind them, approaching the conference room.“Are you lost?” Kent snarled at Jason.“No, are you?” Jason replied. He decided to toy with them a bit if they were going to be rude."Listen, buddy, this is the top floor where executive meetings take place. If y
Confusion coloured Kent’s expression for a moment before he nodded. “Of course, how could I not see it before? He’s the one who will pass out water bottles at the meeting, right?”“No, Kent…” Amelia started, but Jason stopped her. He decided to keep up the game of the reveal of his identity for a little longer."Yes, Kent, I'm the bottle boy,” Jason said.“Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I'm thirsty as hell; do you mind getting me some water now?” Kent requested.“Not at all,” Jason smiled.Amelia looked at him with a brow raised, but Jason just smiled at her. “Would you also like a bottle, miss?” Jason asked.Realisation hit Amelia, and she decided to play along. "Sure, why not?”“Excuse me,” Jason said as he walked over to the dispenser area, which was right next to the conference room where the meeting would take place.He watched Roland, Kent, and Amelia walk into the conference room as he filled up two cups of water. He peered into the room as they opened the door slightly and sa
There was a short moment of silence as everyone looked at each other as if trying to figure out what to say.“Is this a joke?” Roland blurted out as he glared at Jason.“If you’re really the majority shareholder, why were you passing around bottles?” The woman, whom Jason assumed was Victoria, asked with a puzzled expression.Kent didn’t say a word; instead, he looked at Jason with an intense gaze, like he was analysing his every expression. Then he murmured something that resembled a curse and then exchanged a look with Roland.Jason couldn’t deny that Kent’s silence surprised him; he had expected him to be the one to ask if it were a joke, not Roland.Everyone’s eyes darted from Jason to Amelia, as she was the only one who knew the true identity of the majority shareholder. Amelia’s eyes were lit with a tinkle of mischief as she saw everyone’s surprised expressions, particularly Roland’s.“Amelia, is what this young man is saying true?” the elderly man asked.Amelia nodded. "Yes, Mr
"Well, at least he's fair,” Roland said in a low tone.Jason could feel Kent's gaze peering into him, so his eyes darted to Kent. After staring at Jason, Kent exchanged a knowing look and a subtle nod with every other shareholder. The only one who did not nod back at him was Franklin. Kent glared at Franklin like he was warning him about something when he saw that he was unresponsive.Mr. Harrington cleared his throat. “The voting may now begin, from the first person to my left. Victoria”Victoria’s gaze flickered between Kent and Jason. “I vote Kent,” she declared like she had rehearsed it in the mirror that morning.Kent nodded and smiled at her while adjusting the collar of his expensive suit. He looked at Jason, who was currently lying back in his seat, with an aloof expression.By now, everything was perfectly clear to Jason. It was obvious that Kent had convinced everyone to vote for him as president of the Elysian Syndicate. He had probably been eyeing the position for a long
"K..Kent, you can’t be serious." Roland stuttered as he stared at Kent, dazed.“I am. A friendly competition never hurt anybody,” Kent said. “Right, Jason?”“Not at all,” Jason replied. “That is unless you’re the loser.”Small chuckles escaped Amelia and Franklin’s lips at Jason’s last comment, but Kent just offered him a tight-lipped smile.Jason’s surprise at Kent’s acceptance of the challenge had dwindled. He figured that even though Kent wanted to be president right away, he wouldn’t mind waiting some days and beating Jason while he was at it. He didn’t see Jason as much of a competitor, so to him, it wasn’t a challenge but a delayed victory.“So it’s settled then." Mr. Harrington said, “You both have a month to work on the three issues that Amelia has mentioned. After that, we shall see who’s better suited for the position.”“So the Elysian Syndicate won’t have a president till then?” Victoria questioned.“Amelia will continue running things as she has till then.” Mr. Harrington
Jason lifted his knuckle and knocked on the door of Mr. Harrington’s office. As he did so, he wondered why the man had asked to see him.“Come in,” he heard Mr. Harrington say from the other side of the door.Jason opened the door and stepped into the office, shutting the door once he was inside.He took a moment to observe the office. Its decor contrasted with everything else at the Elysian Syndicate in the sense that it was more old-fashioned than the modern design of the rest of the building.Mr. Harrington sat behind a large Mahogany desk that looked as old as he was.“Take a seat,” he told Jason, gesturing for him to take the seat on the other side of the desk.Jason sat in the chair as Mr. Harrington told him to, sinking into the comfortable velvet cushioning of the chair as he did.“I’m sure you’re wondering why I called you here,” Mr. Harrington said.“Yes Sir. I hope I didn’t say anything to upset you at the meeting,” Jason said, his tone respectful.“On the contrary, save fo
“They know each other?” Jason said to himself as he watched Andrew enter Kent’s office.He wondered if Kent would tell Andrew about the competition for the presidency. If he did that, then Andrew would know Jason had shares in the company, and he didn’t want any of the Sinclairs to know yet.Would eavesdropping be a good idea? Jason thought to himself. Without thinking about it twice, Jason decided to do it.Looking around the hallway, Jason saw that it was empty. He took small and quiet steps closer to Kent’s office door until he nearly closed all distance between himself and the wood.He placed his ear close to the door but could only hear muffled voices.Heaving a sigh Jason realised it was useless.The reason he didn’t want the Sinclairs to know if his position was simple. He didn’t want Stefan to see him as a threat. He thought that once Stefan did, he would try to get rid of him. He wanted Stefan to already be behind bars by the time his position was known."Jason, what’re you d
The list contained the names of the companies and their addresses. The first on the list was a construction company called Prodigy Structures. That was where Jason would start.After getting a few things he needed from the Human Resources department at the Elysian Syndicate and going to his apartment to change, Jason took a taxi to the construction site that Prodigy Structures was currently working on.Arriving at the construction site, Jason was welcomed by dust-filled air, the noise of heavy equipment, and the smell of freshly cut concrete. Workers in hard hats and fluorescent vests were sprawled around the site, each of them tending to a specific task.Jason walked up to a worker who was looking at a building plan.“Excuse me, I’d like to speak to the foreman,” Jason said to the worker as he handed him the employment contract that he had gotten from Human Resources.The worker took the paper from Jason and looked at it. “Follow me,” he said to Jason.Jason followed the worker. The