The husky tone came from the shadows and Christian squinted to adjust to the darkness. The bulb flickered once and went off, casting them both in total blackness. Christian remained firm where he was, his hands doing to the pocket of his suit, his left foot firmly on the ground, and his right on a crate. A shadow emerged from the corners of the room threateningly, hooded in what he assumed to be a black mask, covered with an overcoat. "What is this hide-and-seek game?" Christian asked impatiently as the man stood by the obscured window, nothing but a lump in the dark. "So impatient, calm down, now, you're here and we have all the time." The voice said, strangely too deep and Christian decided that it was modified by a device. "I don't think I have all the time, you said you had answers," Chris said as the shadow moved a little and he could finally make out the frame. It was a widely built human, most likely male, 5"7 feet or more. "Oh but I do, I have all the answers
The Jupiter. It resonated in Christians's minds. The Jupiter was getting involved in the day-to-day running of the company and even though he had been in exile for a long time, he still knew it was strange. He had an insider who provided him information while he was away and this was how he could make informed choices and make his way back into the family again. "Sir, should we get to the office first or would you rather take your morning meeting?" The driver asked as they drove speedily down the highway. "The meeting can wait, I need to meet with Pa Pete." He replied, his eyes still on the road. The driver nodded and made a turn by the It was odd for the Jupiter to offer a deal to Hogan, Hogan was not an important member of the board, he was just an investor like everyone else with a meager share. If anyone was to be offered such deals, it had to be Christian, after all he had the bigger shares in the company and was more qualified to negotiate with foreign investor
The air suddenly grows tense, Christian stops mid-step and turns to Evans who is standing before him, his face sad, his eyes almost pleading. Christian knew what was to come. He could tell from his expression that the secret was beginning to crush him after so many years. But no, this was not the right time to talk about such things, no, he must not let them know he knows and he didn't want to talk about it, no. He had to seek out his answers and not be deterred by anyone, certainly not Evans who seemed a little too concerned about his safety suddenly. "We can talk later, Father, I have an urgent meeting to catch up with if I want to get my hands on that 10%" he replied with a big smile that he hoped wasn't as fake as it felt. Evans looked at him for a few seconds and then nodded, deciding it was best to hold on to the secret a little longer if Christian was still unaware of it. "You're right, I think you should get along, I've sent all you need to know to your email,
Christian could not help smirking even as he got into his car and told the driver he would not be needing him for the rest of the day. It felt good to finally disappoint Pa Pete and his low expectations of him. The whole board had been shocked at the sudden turn of events and Christian had the chance to humiliate Hogan. Pa Pete, always impartial, had announced to the executives that indeed Christian had already signed the deal with the investors while Hogan was still hoping to get his proposal approved, hence, the 10% would be transferred to Chris and not Hogan. Hogan fumed and so did many members of the table but they could not openly oppose that decision, not when the deal and the instructions had been from the Jupiter himself. Hogan did not wait for the meeting to be over, he excused himself, claiming he had a pressing family emergency. Christian calmly accepted the congratulations from others and waited for the close of the meeting before he left, 10% richer and sti
Fury coursed through his veins as he heard the audacious demand from the strange man. His fist clenched and eyes red, Christian smashed the phone on the wall angrily and drove off. It was high time he acted before his life was ruined. Christian knew what it meant to have his shares transferred to someone else, that would compromise his position on the board and even the company at large. He was in a tight spot and he had to act and act fast. Just as he was contemplating, he received a call from Evans and another call from Pa Pete.He answered Evans first. "I have received a blurry image, I don't know what it is but I thought to tell you it has your name written on it." The man said, sounding pretty worried. Christian cursed under his breath but said he had no idea what it meant. "Are you sure? You can confide in me, son, what is going on? Is this about the deal from Jupiter?" He asked worriedly. "That deal was concluded yesterday." He replied with an impatient sigh. "
In the dark office, Justine Gilbert shook in his shoes as he was summoned by the mysterious man who stood in the shadows, his voice a deep baritone, his features obscured by the shadows. "You have done wonderfully well, boy." The voice said approvingly and Justin nodded, scared and uncertain of how to reply. "But you see, those shares can never be yours, you are not worthy of it." The voice said and Justin swallowed nervously. The 39% share was certainly the world on his shoulders, it was all too sudden and he did not seem to know how to handle it. "I don't know...he...he said I should take it, I think he has a plan," Justin replied with a shaky voice. "Oh but he does," the mysterious voice snapped, "But that plan will not be in your favor." "What do you mean?" Justin asked nervously. "There'll be some very powerful rivals coming after you and trust me, Justin, you can't stand all that heat and neither can your family. So I have a proposition for you," the voice
"We need to talk," Justin said as Christian entered the male restroom. "I don't think there's anything we need to speak about, Justin, I'm sure you did what was best for the family and you have the power to," Christian replied. Christian stood in front of the full-length mirror, adjusting his striped tie and wearing his cufflinks. "You need to know that I had no choice, I was facing... Listen, I'm thinking there's something I can do to compensate you, you know, I could give you back, let's say, 3% shares, just to get you back on the board." Justin offered lamely. Christian chuckled, amazed at the ridiculous idea. "You are offering me 3% shares, Justin, even though you as a junior executive had much more, what will that make me?" He asked, amused. "How about we make it 5%? That's what I had at the table, I know you don't want to be off the board and Pa Pete will not hesitate to pull you out, that's the rule and you know it, we need to act fast." Justin said. Chris
Hogan's eyes blazed with fury as Christian rose from the low seat at the same time that the Asian man did. "Lee Hum?" Pa Pete asked, his tone nearly condescending, he looked at the amateur businessman on the table, he hadn't been there for a full year yet, he had very few shares on the board and he was not popular. "Yes, I transferred my shares to Lee Hum too and that makes him the most powerful man on this table as we speak," Christian affirmed. Pa Pete looked at the books again, it was right there. Justin has only been transferred 5% and because he had been too eager, he didn't look through the documents nor did anyone at the table, they were too shocked that Chris wanted to transfer his shares in the first place. But Chris was smarter than all of them, he knew Justin could not be trusted, he knew his loyalty lay with anyone he felt had more power and authority and so he was likely to bend at the slightest instance. "I, Lee Hum, of sound mind and knowing the conseq