Chapter 29 29. It is Strategy: 24 Minutes Comeback
The room fell silent when we entered. Every face from last week was there-the strict-faced chairwoman across Don, and a dozen others turning to stare as Lucien walked straight toward his seat, still holding my hand.
Rafael was in the position I was last week, except he stood behind a podium.
"I'm calling a motion to dismiss the interim CEO and remove Margaret Foster from her position." His voice was deeply confident, its rich tenor hanging in the air. Murmurs broke out immediately. "And another-to reinstate myself as CEO and Chairman."
Margaret let out a sharp laugh. "You can't be serious."
"I am." Lucien reached his chair and sat down, pulling me onto his lap.
My body tensed. Every head turned. I tried to stand, but his hand locked firmly around my waist.
"Lucien," I whispered.
"Stay."
His tone was soft, but there was no room for argument.
My skin burned where his hand rested. I could feel the quiet rumble of his chest under my back. Steady, unbothered, like he'd planned every second of this.
The chairwoman's laugh turned sharp. Others joined her, mocking him and exchanging words about how pathetic he was.
"Have you lost your mind, Hayes? You were suspended. You have no authority here."
"Suspended from a position, not from ownership."
"You own forty percent," Don said. "That's not enough to override this board."
"You're right, Father. It wasn't." His hand stayed relaxed on my waist. "That's why I acquired another fifteen."
Silence crashed over the room.
"What?" Margaret's smile vanished.
"Fifteen percent controlling shares," Lucien repeated. "Which brings my total ownership to fifty-five percent. I am, essentially, the company on paper."
Shock rippled through the room. Even Don's face went pale.
"That's impossible," someone protested. "Where would you even get that kind of capital?"
Lucien raised his free hand. Rafael stepped forward with a tablet, connecting it to the screen. A document appeared, covered in official seals and signatures.
At the top: Share Transfer Agreement - 15% HAYC Controlling Shares - Chen Capital Nominees Ltd.
"As of six a.m. this morning," Lucien said, "I acquired another fifteen percent of Hayes Corp's controlling shares."
One man stepped closer, scanning the screen. His face shifted, doubt first, then disbelief.
"It's real," he muttered. "The transfer's real."
The board erupted.
"You can't just buy your way back in!"
"This has to be illegal!"
"Where did you get the funds?"
"How did you manage this in six days?"
"Did you use illegal funds?"
"This violates procedure!"
Lucien only leaned back. "I bought shares when they were cheap. That's called smart investing."
"You can't expect us to accept this without question!" Margaret snapped, standing. "There are regulations-"
"I followed them," Lucien cut in. "Every transaction was legal, documented, and filed. I purchased through a legitimate nominee company."
Don's jaw clenched. "Your personal accounts couldn't cover that purchase. Not after the crash."
Lucien didn't flinch. "I have my sources. And they're none of your concern."
"This is unethical!" Margaret's voice trembled now.
"No," he said. "This is business. You suspended me from my position, not from ownership. I don't need your permission to buy what's mine."
"You manipulated the market!" someone shouted.
"I bought when you panicked. That's intelligence." He leaned back slightly, voice cool. "You tried to use me as a scapegoat. For not believing in me. For thinking you could push me out."
"We can challenge this in court."
"You can try, but you'll lose. I have documentation for every transfer. And while you waste time in court, I'll still own fifty-five percent of Hayes Corp."
Don growled, "You arrogant bastard."
I wondered, for a second, why he wasn't on his son's side. Maybe that was why they hated each other.
"Maybe. But I'm an arrogant bastard who just reclaimed his company. And the rest of this meeting is decided. Rafael?"
"With a fifty-five percent majority vote," Rafael announced from the podium, "the motion to reinstate Lucien Hayes as CEO and appoint him as Chairman of the board is passed."
No one spoke. No one moved.
Lucien rose, pulling me with him. His hand found mine as he walked out, leaving stunned faces behind. Margaret's skin was flushed red. Don's jaw looked ready to crack.
My mind lagged behind as we stepped into the hall, trying to catch up to what he'd just done.
The man I was supposed to destroy had just reclaimed everything-because of me. I'd leaked the files, crashed his stock, made it cheap enough for him to buy back power.
"We're heading to the press conference."
I simply nodded, still too stunned to speak.
The next room was packed. Reporters filled every seat; cameras and microphones crowded the front like a wall. Lucien's thumb brushed my hand once before he let go and climbed the stage.
"Good afternoon," he began. "I'll be brief."
The room quieted instantly.
"The documents that sparked last week's scandal were altered by an internal staff member, Dr. Eleanor, for motives I cannot disclose at this time." He gestured to the screen behind him. "An internal audit revealed edits inconsistent with our original testing logs. These are the originals."
The screen showed side-by-side comparisons. Dates changed, numbers adjusted, highlighted sections that didn't match the company's standard formatting or something. Just enough to plant doubt.
My stomach twisted. He was rewriting the story.
"Our actual safety testing shows irritation in roughly one hundred cases per million users, under prolonged use exceeding two years," he continued. "A usage-dependent metric-well within industry standards."
He made it sound almost noble. A man sabotaged. A visionary betrayed.
"However, as the reinstated CEO and newly appointed Chairman, I'll own my mistakes, even the ones I didn't commit."
He tapped the screen again, revealing three bullet points.
"First, we're delaying the product launch for four weeks for additional testing and reformulation.
Second, we'll distribute one million free samples to volunteers and public health partners for open feedback.
Third, we're establishing an external safety panel and a fifty-million-dollar compensation fund for affected users and accelerated refunds."
Each word was measured, strategic. His tone softened when his gaze found me again, like he was daring me to see the man beneath the mask.
He ended with: "We'll fix this openly."
The room erupted in questions as he stepped off the stage, leaving Mr. Weiss to handle the press.
In less than twenty-four minutes, Lucien Hayes had rewritten the narrative and somehow looked untouchable doing it.
Ronan was right. I was a fool.
I'd gone digging for dirt and handed him the shovel to bury me with.
I was so excited to find dirt on Lucien and forgot about my main purpose. My stupid ass didn't even look at the other files that were in the safe.
What would Ronan do when he saw this? When he saw Lucien stronger than before?
Lucien reached for my hand again as we left.
The elevator ride to his office was silent. When we stepped inside, he shut the door and pressed me gently against it, one hand braced above my head.
My pulse jumped. I kept my gaze down, staring at his chest instead of his face.
"Why have you been so quiet all day?" His voice dropped low, more curious than harsh.
I opened my mouth but couldn't find the words.
His free hand touched my jaw, soft and careful.
"Look at me, Camila."
I didn't. Not until his fingers tilted my chin up, forcing my eyes to meet his. Gold stared into mine, too close, too intense.
Something twisted deep inside me, hot and confusing. My heart thudded so hard it hurt, I had to press my hands against it.
His eyes dropped to my hands, then back to my face.
Slowly, his finger traced from my temple down the curve of my cheek. The touch sent a thrum through me, settling low in my stomach.
"Breathe..." he rasped.