chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

ALEX POV

I was a few minutes away from Velles when the traffic stopped completely.

The road was packed with red lights everywhere. Orange cones had funneled two lanes into one, and a detour sign redirected half the cars down a side street but it didn’t help. Everyone was stuck.

I turned the music up and tapped my fingers against the wheel while watching the red brake lights ahead.

Ellis email from earlier flashed through my mind. I have replayed the conversation a hundred times already, and I still wasn’t ready.

A horn blares behind me and I jump slightly to realise the line has moved.

Velles is easy to get from the street.The building was all white with black glass.The windows went all the way up and inside, a strip of original brick ran along one wall, rough against all that clean white space.

I parked in the visitor lot and went in. The lobby had already started winding down for the evening. The receptionist was still at her desk, fingers moving quickly across her keyboard with a bag slung over her shoulder like she was getting ready to leave too.

I was still a few steps away when she stopped typing and raised her eyes.

"Good morning, how can I.." She stopped when I moved closer to "Mr Hawthorne."

"I need to see Mr Valmont."

"I'm sorry, Mr Valmont is not in today."she replied

"What do you mean he's not in?"I stare at her

"He left early for a family emergency."

I pulled out my phone and dialed his number. It rang three times before going to voicemail. I hung up and tried again but it went straight to voicemail again.

The receptionist shifts in her seat."Would you like to leave a message?"

"No."

I turn and walk back to my car.

********

I was on my way home when Maya called in.

"Where are you?"she asked quietly

"Driving home, what's going on?"

"The stock is dropping”She paused.

I had missed the collection release time without even realizing it and that must have been about forty minutes ago.

"How bad is it?"I asked switching lanes

"Seven percent in the first hour"

“Get the marketing team on it for the next hour and let's wait it out"

“I'm on it” she replied and disconnect the call

______________________________________

The Hawthorne Group building felt different when I walked in this morning.

The floor felt like it was holding its breath. People stayed at their stations, but their eyes kept flicking to the stock ticker on the side monitor.Someone had pulled up the live chart on the main display.

Another person was standing at a desk whispering to a colleague, papers pressed flat with both hands. They stopped when they saw me come in.

I knew how long they had worked on that collection.Months of late nights and last minute schedules and now they were sitting at their desks staring at numbers that made all of it feel like nothing.

I came out of the elevator and met Maya outside my office.

She nods toward the door, lowering her voice. “He’s inside.”

I stopped walking“Who?”

"The Board's counsel."

I stop.

Stephen Pryce does not visit the company often,only when the board has something to say that nobody wanted to say themselves.

The last two times he showed up, a whole department got restructured. He is not the kind of man one would be happy to see.

"How long has he been waiting?"I asked

"About fifteen minutes."

I nodded and pushed the door open.

He has made himself comfortable in my chair with his briefcase on his lap and hands folded over it. He stood when I entered and offered the kind of smile that didn't reach anywhere.

"Mr Hawthorne"he greeted

"Stephen" we shook hands briefly, then I moved behind my desk. "What is it this time?"

He sets his briefcase on the chair,opens it and pulls out a tablet.

"The stock opened at ninety two during the summer release yesterday.It's currently at eighty five and still dropping."

He turns the tablet toward me.

"I'm aware."I said without looking

"Chen Industries called an emergency meeting this morning. They are reconsidering the partnership we proposed"

“Why?” My jaw tightens.

“They want reassurance that this issue won't damage their reputation by association."

"It won't."I muttered

"How?" Stephen leans forward slightly. "The leaked email is all over industry blogs. Investors think you're either incompetent or dishonest. Either way, they are reconsidering pulling out."

"Even when someone is sabotaging us?"

"The board does not care about that,their shares and money is what they care about" He pauses.

I drag a hand through my hair and look away.

“Are they trying to take my place?”

"They're protecting the company."He closes his briefcase. "You have three days and that is surely enough time to Show them a plan that works"

He heads for the door and stops with his hand on the handle.

"For what it's worth Alex,I hope you figure this out."

The door clicks shut behind him.

I sit there and stare at the clip on notes Maya had left on my desk. The stock chart looks like a cliff edge.

My phone buzzes on the table.I pick up my phone to see missed calls, all from my mother.

I lock the screen and slip the phone back into my pocket. I will call her later.