Nathan’s eyes narrowed. "Protect you? By taking away what another student struggled to achieve? No, Brian. That's very wrong, and if you follow her path, you will meet the same end."The boy remained silent, but his jaw clenched in defiance. Brian seemed way more stubborn than even his mother.Brian looked up, his eyes blazing with anger. "She’s my mom," he whispered, his voice shaky but firm.Nathan’s expression hardened, a coldness creeping into his voice again. "Your mother made choices, and she will have to face the consequences.""If you want to succeed in life, you need to work very hard. But if you’re too stubborn to see that… then you’ll end up like her."Nathan’s words hung in the air, and Brian’s eyes remained locked on Nathan’s, a mix of anger and frustration twisting his young features.For a moment, the boy looked as though he might say something more, but no words came. He clenched his fists tightly at his sides, but he couldn’t bring himself to argue further.Vanessa, s
Vanessa smirked as she took another sip of her wine. "You know, darling, I couldn’t help but notice how funny you looked in the cleaner's uniform," Vanessa smirked teasingly.Nathan paused mid-chew, raising an eyebrow at her teasing tone. "Oh, really?" he responded with raised eyebrows, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his lips.Vanessa’s grin widened as she leaned back in her chair, enjoying the moment. "Oh, yes. I almost didn’t recognize you... The Almighty Lord Cloud holding a mop in his hands? Who would believe that?"Vanessa's eyes widened with mischief. "You looked absolutely ridiculous. All those executives walking past you with their heads held high, completely unaware that their boss was scrubbing floors right under their noses. I couldn’t stop laughing the entire drive home."Nathan leaned back, crossing his arms. "That was the point, wasn’t it? I had to blend in."Vanessa tilted her head, pretending to be deep in thought. "True. But I must say, seeing you in that clea
Mr. Hastings grumbled, "We've moved millions already without anyone noticing, but we can’t get greedy. The next phase has to be clean. The last thing we need is for someone upstairs to get suspicious."Nathan’s fists clenched. Millions. The executives were stealing from Cloud Corporation!They were siphoning off funds and hiding them in secret accounts. He had suspected minor corruption in the company, but this was something far worse, a large scale conspiracy to run his empire to the ground.“We’ve got everything lined up,” Hastings continued. “The shell companies are in place. As long as nobody gets too curious, we’ll be sitting pretty by the end of the quarter. "And if anyone does get curious, we’ve got ways of... handling that.”A third voice, Diego, the head of security, laughed darkly. “Don’t worry. If anyone pokes around, I’ll make sure they’re dealt with. No questions asked.”Nathan’s mind raced as he could kt believe what hearing. His heart pounded louder in his ears, bu
Nathan remained calm, even though he could feel the tension rising in the room. “I wasn’t listening,” he insisted.“I didn’t hear anything... I’m just trying to do my job here.”Hastings’ eyes flashed with fury at the mention of shell companies. He stepped forward, his face inches from Nathan’s. “You’re lying.”Nathan knew he was running out of time. He had to find a way to make these people believe him.“If you didn’t hear anything,” Hastings said slowly, his voice low and menacing, “then you won’t mind if we take you to Diego’s office for a little... chat.”Diego cracked his knuckles again, grinning darkly as he stepped forward. “Just a little conversation. It’ll be fun.”Nathan’s heart raced. “I don’t know what you think I heard,” Nathan said, taking a deep breath, “but I assure you, I heard nothing.”Hastings’ eyes narrowed. “Used against us?” he echoed, his voice dangerously low. “So, you did hear something.”Nathan cursed inwardly. He had said too much.Diego's grin widened. “Lo
Nathan turned slowly, his eyes still lowered in deference, but inside, his mind raced. What now? He had nearly escaped, but Edward wasn’t about to let him go that easily. Hastings and Sylvester exchanged amused glances, sensing that something more dramatic was about to unfold."Come here," Edward said, his voice was so cool but it was laced with poison. "Pour me a drink."Nathan let out a small sigh of relief. Hw called him back for just a drink?In his mind he felt somehow that he was about to pour a drink for someone that should be bowing to him. He decided to pour him a drink, it was a drink after all. Very soon, Edward will be the one begging for a drink behind bars. He walked toward the small bar cart at the side of the room, feeling the weight of everyone’s gaze on his back. Everyone watched as he reached out for the bottle of whiskey, the amber liquid gleaming in the dim light.The room was silent, the only sound the soft clink of glass as Nathan uncorked the bottle and po
Nathan’s blood ran cold, but he remained calm.He glanced at the shattered glass at his feet and then slowly raised his gaze back to Edward. His expression hardened, his stance unmoving."I won’t do that," Nathan said boldly. "Why would you expect me to kneel on the broken glass?"Edward’s malicious smile faded, and his eyes began blazing in fury. The executives shifted uncomfortably, sensing that things were about to escalate."How dare you?" Edward barked at Nathan. "How dare you defy me? Here? In front of everyone?"Nathan met his gaze, unflinching. "Yes."Edward took a step closer, his fists clenched at his sides. "Can you imagine? An ordinary janitor dares to refuse me? Do you really think you have a choice?"Nathan didn’t waver. "I’m not kneeling."Hastings let out a sharp laugh, his amusement barely contained. "The audacity! He actually thinks he can challenge you… Challenge us." He leaned back in his chair, a smirk playing on his lips.Deigo, who had been pacing like a caged a
Diego groaned loudly, his voice trembling with pain as he rolled on the floor, trying to free himself from the shards of glass making it's way deeper into his skin.His hands shook as he attempted to push himself up, but he cried out even louder as every movement only sent fresh waves of agony coursing through him.Blood dripped from his arms and onto the polished floor and flowed to where Nathan was standing.His face contorted in anguish, and soon the mighty head of security was reduced to sobbing like a newborn baby and gasping for breath.Edward’s face twisted in disgust as he watched Diego struggle. "Useless! So useless!" he spat, his voice dripping with contempt. "You’re supposed to be the head of security, and you can’t even handle a **janitor**? Shame on you!"Diego barely managed to lift his head, his face pale with pain and humiliation. "I… I—""Shut up!" Edward snapped, cutting him off. He took a deep breath, visibly shaking with fury, and then turned his icy gaze toward Na
The other executives exchanged glances. Finally this audacious cleaner will be taught a huge lesson. Nathan had crossed the line and Edward was determined to make an example of him.Nathan remained still, unmoved by Edward call. He set the glass down gently on the bar, the faint clink of the glass echoed through the room.Not too long after Edward made the call, the door to the room swung open, revealing a group of towering security men clad in black uniforms, they had a very cold and deadly expression. These were the kind of men who could break bones with ease. The executives, especially Edward, wore smug grins. These enforcers would definitely beat Nathan till his last breath. "Finally," Edward sneered, waving his hand impatiently. "Get in here and beat this fool until he’s begging for mercy. I want him on his knees. Now!"But something strange happened. The security men didn’t move. They stood at the entrance, their expressions unreadable, their eyes fixed on Nathan. A heavy