lanie sat in the company’s boardroom with a lancholy look on her face. The expressions on the board mbers’ faces were perhaps even gloomier than the ti she had first taken over-when they had all believed things couldn’t possibly get any worse. Or that they deserved a better ’leader’ than a re woman like her.
"You are right. The Stordge team deliberately targeted us," one of them said grimly. "They added impossible clauses and bribed Spencer to go along with them. We need to take them to court and fight this acquisition tooth and nail.
lanie gave a tired sigh and rolled her eyes. "Do you really think we can afford the litigation fee?" Her tone was dry, almost sarcastic, and her question silenced the room in an instant. No one had an answer. The company had already been bled dry and they were scrambling to curb their losses. No one would throw in more money into sothing they were not even sure of
Before anyone could speak again, the door to the conference room opened. lanie glanced up, half-expecting the chairman of Stordge to walk in with his expected entourage. Her body tensed, prepared for confrontation. But it wasn’t him. It was Adam.
Her expression softened as soon as she saw him. A small smile touched her lips. He hadn’t told her he would be coming. She had no idea...The sly guy.
But before she could gesture for him to sit beside her, she sensed a shift in the room-a sudden spike in tension. The atmosphere turned cold. She could feel the hostility radiating from the others like a storm cloud settling over the table. She sighed. Really? They were going to be hostile to him?
Adam, however, didn’t seem to notice or care. Calm and self-assured, he walked straight to his usual spot-the far end of the oval table- positioning himself directly opposite the empty seat where they expected the Stordge chairman to sit. As if by instinct or design the position placed him squarely in the seat of opposition.
Before lanie could intervene or say anything to ease the growing unease, one of the shareholders suddenly burst out, "What is he doing here?"
The words cracked across the room like a whip.
Adam raised an eyebrow, his expression calm, almost amused. He looked at the speaker with a cool detachnt that only heightened the tension.
"’He’ has ears, and a mouth too," Adam replied,"And he can hear your questions—and answer them-without you directing them at lanie." He paused, his gaze sweeping across the table before adding, "I already hold a share in the company. I have as much right to be here as any of you."
"It’s all because of you that the company has reached this position!" another board mber snapped, their voice rising above the murmurs now bubbling around the table.
Adam didn’t flinch. He leaned back slightly in his chair, the corner of his mouth tilting upward in amusent.
"Because of ?" he asked, his voice quiet, but cutting through the room with precision. "Really?"
The room quieted again.
"Then I suppose I should have just died when Spencer planned my murder."
A few jaws dropped at that but everyone shook their heads.
Adam continued, as if he’d only said he missed breakfast.
"And for the record, I’m not here because of your little ss with Stordge. I’m here because so of you," his eyes flicked to three specific faces seated near the end, "are under the impression that you can use Spencer as a shield. That you can wash your hands clean while he takes the fall."
He leaned forward now, voice hardening. "So before Stordge steps in and scoops up what’s left of this carcass, I figured it’s ti to cut off the rotten parts of the company myself."
The boardroom erupted.
"What do you an by that?"
"You don’t have the authority!"
"Who the hell do you think you are?"
"This is blackmail—"
Even lanie was stunned into silence. She blinked and turned to look at Adam, who sat calm amid the chaos, She hadn’t seen this version of him before. Calculated. Colder than usual. And clearly, prepared. Ohhh.... He was totally yummy... And she was curious what rotten parts was he talking about.
"What are you playing at?" she asked finally trying to keep her tone neutral
Adam’s eyes didn’t leave the rest of the board as he spoke. "lanie, there are people here who would have you believe that Spencer is the only person behind everything. But such big scams... Can they really be hidden? Nope. Everyone got their cut and when Spencer was exposed, they’ve hurriedly co forward to lynch him while making sure their deeds remain covered.
"Even if you’re a major shareholder," soone snapped from the far end, "if Stordge takes over the pledged shares today, your own stake will be reduced to nothing. You won’t even qualify for a seat at this table!"
"Exactly," another one chid in, "You’ll be finished, Adam. So maybe think twice before you pretend to play executioner and point fingers at any of us. An inexperienced brat like you!"
Still calm. Still smiling. Adam reached into the folder he’d brought with him and placed three neatly clipped sheets on the table in front of him, sliding them across the polished wood toward the chairman.
"I think you’ll want to see this," he said quietly.
The shouting simred down slightly as curious glances turned toward the docunts. lanie looked from the papers to Adam, her brows furrowed. What the hell was he doing?
Adam leaned forward again, lacing his fingers together. "Those are proof of Spencer’s offshore accounts, the fake shell companies used to launder bribe money from Stordge, and correspondence—yes, I an emails, voice recording and ssages, between him and at least two people in this room who encouraged the sabotage."
Gasps echoed around the table. One of the directors visibly paled. Another leaned back in his chair, looking suddenly very interested in the floor.
"I’ll be forwarding these to the regulatory authorities, of course," Adam added casually. "But I figured you all deserved a front-row seat."
"Is this so kind of stunt?" soone barked.
"No," Adam said.
"Here is the proof for these people."
"Even if there is proof. You, Adam Collins, have no rights here, regardless of if you are a shareholder or not!"
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