Chapter 65: Glaverra Enterprise__the arrival of the CEO
In Mirage sa, a tall sleek glass skyscraper stood tall in the middle of the city. The Galverra Enterprise. The company, that was usual lively with the staff mbers doing as they pleased was now tensed after the arrival of the CEO who rarely ca to the company unless he was needed for important etings. He had placed his cousin as the company’s president while he was away doing_what the staff mbers were never inford about. Though they had heard a lot about him and how bad tempered he was, most of the workers had never set eyes on him as he always walked straight into the conference room whenever he arrived.
For two years, he hadn’t set foot into the company until today, the day the official company sales between Fabian who was the current acting CEO and Rodrigo Enterprises was to be finalized.
Everyone had been astonished at Xavier Galverra’s appearance, because he hadn’t announced his arrival like he usually does. He had walked up into the conference room where the eting with Rodrigo enterprises executives were making an agreent about the shares Fabian planned to sell to them.
However, before he arrived at the conference, Xavier had found the staff mbers of the Galverra Enterprise joyously joking and laughing among themselves instead of focusing on their tasks.
Everyone knew he had a dislike for working with incompetent individuals, but since he hadn’t been the one running the company for the past fifteen years, everyone had grown to ignore the rules and did as they pleased.
His irration had grown and he’d imdiately barked orders at them and warned, "If I hear any more chatter or laughter in here," his intense gray eyes scanned the staff nacingly before adding, "then be prepared to find another job."
The staff didn’t need to be told twice to understand that the CEO of Galverra Enterprise had returned, and they imdiately grasped the reason for his presence. No one dared to make another sound, and the silence stretched so long that even the softest feather falling to the ground would have been audible. They held their breaths until he passed by them and headed towards the conference room.
Being aware of Fabian’s actions behind the CEO’s back, the staff mbers already knew their president was in a serious trouble. And before long, they witnessed Fabian sprinting out of the conference room, his nose bleeding, closely pursued by the executives from Rodrigo Enterprises.
"Oh boy, I pity the board mbers in the conference room. Sir Xavier has always been brutal, his eyes alone can make a soldier crawl on their knees." One of the workers remarked while nervously pushing up his glasses.
"I hope he doesn’t plan on staying for good in Mirage sa now that president Fabian has ssed up big ti. If Sir Xavier were to run the company for good, I guess we will all be dead before our ti. I heard he’s nothing like his late father when it cos to business. He’s ruthless and heartless." Replied another anxious mber who was glad she wasn’t in the board eting.
"I wonder what’s going on in the conference room."
***
Silence hung like a pall over the ten n seated at the conference table in the boardroom of Galverra Enterprise. A silence that was shattered as the gold clock on the wall began ominously tolling the hour of ten. No one dared to speak for the fear of getting hit like the president had been punched on the nose and was fired imdiately despite being a relative.
From his position at the head of the long table, Neil’s gaze raked over the ten n on both his sides who were Galverra Enterprise’s board of directors. He couldn’t believe what his cousin had dared to do in his absence and yet none of them stepped out to speak so senses into Fabian or even attempted to inform him about his cousin’s sudden decision to sell his shares to that bastard Rodrigo!
If Neil hadn’t been inford by Liam, he would have been too late in rescuing his family’s hard earned na in the country. He would have lost the control he had on the Galverra Enterprises to that Kelvin Rodrigo. Though he had changed his identity to Neil Wayner after his parents death, he hadn’t planned to forget his real identity as Xavier Galverra in Mirage sa, nor did he plan to let Noah Glaverra, his father’s hard work go to waste and fall into the hands of his enemy.
Neil’s gray eyes continued to rake over the n. Each man had been carefully selected by his father, and each possessed the three qualities that Noah Galverra required of his board mbers: intelligence, greed and spinelessness. But because of their incompetence, he had been forced to fly down to Mirage sa instead of being in Ivy Grove institute and looking for clues about the rat.
"I asked," Neil repeated his earlier question in a cold clipped voice, "Were you all dumb enough to follow that son of a bitch in deceiving
today?"
Four directors nervously cleared their throats, another reached for the crystal pitcher of ice water in the center of the table. None of them had the gall to answer as they had been bribed not to say a word to Xavier until the deal had been made with Rodrigo. They hadn’t even expected that he would find out about this as they had all promised to keep their mouths shut, but it seed soone had given them away.
The board of directors averted gaze and the continued ek silence ignited the rage Neil was keeping under such tenuous control.
"No comnts?" he asked with silky nace. "Then perhaps one of you who is not incapable of speaking altogether will explain to
why I was not inford of Fabian’s disastrous decisions or his erratic behavior during the last two years of my absence." His gray eyes continued to move across the n willing himself to stay patient and not make them bleed with the anger he was holding back.
One of the n cleared his throat while running a finger between his shirt collar and his neck, "Your cousin said you were not to be bothered with matters here because you have better things to do than to be present in the company. He specifically said that to us, didn’t he, Andrew?" he asked, nodding for confirmation from the man seated beside him.
The man Andrew nodded in confirmation and continued to say, "This is what Fabian said to us ’Xavier is going to be overseeing our branches in the other countries while I will take over this one. My cousin is not to be bothered with the little decisions we are making here.’ That is exactly what he said, isn’t it?" Nine heads nodded in unison.
Neil looked at them as he slowly rolled a pencil between his fingers. "So," he concluded in a dangerously soft voice, "Not one of you ’bothered’ . Not even when he sold a few of the Galverra’s lands in Mirage sa and an airline for half their worth... not even when he decided to sell all of my shares to Rodrigo?"
"It...it was your family’s money, and your relatives, Xavier."
The man on the end held up his hands in a gesture of helplessness. "All of us combined own only a small percentage of shares in the company. The rest of the shares belong to your family. We knew what he was doing wasn’t in the best interest of the company, but your family owns the Enterprise. And your cousin said he wanted the company to have a better managent."
Red fury boiled up inside of Neil, pouring through his veins; the pencil in his hand snapped in two. "Better managent?" he bit out savagely.
"Y-yes," another said. "You know...how you have been away for so long, he thought you were not responsible enough to manage the company and..."
Neil’s hand crashed down on the table with the impact of an explosion as he surged to his feet.
"Are you trying to tell
that you thought it was rational for him to give away the company’s managent to another enterprise so it would flourish smoothly?" He couldn’t believe how incompetent all of them were.
Did they really think giving away his shares to Rodrigo would make them still work here as the board of directors? Noah Galverra had employed them and if Rodrigo took over, everything would change and since Neil held the largest shares the position of a CEO would be taken by soone Rodrigo assigned!
A muscle throbbed in Neil’s clenched jaw as he passed a final murderous look over them. "I am sure you will understand that the company no longer needs incompetent people like all of you. I don’t want any of you in my Enterprise anymore." He paused, maliciously enjoying their stunned looks, then continued with a colder tone,
"Nor will I approve the paynt of your month and annual fees for your services as ’directors’ during this past year. I don’t want to see any of you in my company again. This eting is adjourned!"
Disagreeing murmurs filled the room, but none of them dared to voice them out for him to hear. However, one of them unwisely chose that mont to beco assertive. "Er, Xavier, it is in the bylaws of the company that directors are paid the annual sum of..."
"Take
to court then!" Neil spat. Turning on his heel, he stalked through the doorway into his adjoining office, followed by the man who had been seated on his right, silently observing the proceedings.
"Make yourself a drink, Jas," Neil gritted as he stripped off his suit coat. Jerking his tie loose, he walked over to the floor length windows of the office and stared blankly out to the magnificent city of Mirage sa.
Jas glanced at the elaborate glass drinks cabinet against the glass wall, then quickly sat down in one of the four black velvet armchairs facing the desk. His brooding eyes were filled with pride as he looked at Neil, who was standing at the windows with his back to him, one arm braced high against the fra, his hand clenched into a fist.
After several tense minutes, the hand unclenched and his arm ca down. In a gesture of weary frustration, Neil flexed his broad shoulders, then ran his hand around the back of his neck, massaging the taut muscles. "I thought I wouldn’t have the need to ever step feet into Mirage sa and deal with the company personally," he said with a bitter sigh as he turned. "Apparently I have to pay more attention to it now and find more competent workers."
He moved over to the desk and sat down in the massive, high-backed chair behind it and looked at Jas, his assistant and spy in the company for many years. With an expressionless face, he said, "I take it that you have no suggestions for a new president?"
"Xavier," Jas almost pleaded, "I am just an assistant with no practice in the other matters; and if you’re asking for my opinion for the company’s good, I think you’d do better coming back to Mirage sa and being a full ti CEO in the company instead of dealing with everything from overseas."
Even though Jas had worked for Neil for years, he had no idea Neil was the mysterious soldier of the country, because they all knew him as Xavier Galverra and they all believed he was doing so other business in Zen that was why he couldn’t run the company himself in Mirage sa.
Neil was undeterred by Jas’s opinion for him to co back to Mirage sa, that was sothing he would never consider. "I will assign a new set of board of directors before I fly back to Zen tomorrow morning. I will handle..."
Neil’s words were cut short by the vibration of his cellphone on his desk.
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