Chapter 263
Chapter 263
Katniss sat down across from him and cradled her coffee.
"I went to see Lillian today."
Cedric didn't respond. He waited.
"She received a threatening letter. Someone took photos of her mother. Told her to keep quiet."
Katniss paused. "She asked for my help. Told me everything."
"Everything?"
"Leon."
Katniss raised her head and met his eyes.
"All of it. He orchestrated the whole thing."
Cedric's expression barely shifted. He was silent for a few seconds, then nodded slowly. "I figured."
"You figured?"
"I found the original files from Jason's case."
Cedric said.
"Leon was the one who reported Jason. During the trial, Jason insisted he was being framed—said someone made him take the fall. No one believed him."
"After Jason got out, he kept doing Leon's dirty work. Until he was silenced."
Katniss's fingers tightened around her cup. "You found all of this. Why didn't you tell me?"
Cedric lowered his gaze to his coffee. The silence stretched long between them.
When he spoke, his voice was barely audible.
"I doubted you. I confronted you in front of the entire company. I put you through hell. And in the end, you were the one who'd been set up all along—while I was the one Leon played like a fool."
He looked up at her. His eyes were rimmed with red.
"Katniss, I'm sorry."
His voice shook as the words left him.
"I should have believed you. From the very beginning. But I..."
He stopped. His throat worked, and the sting behind his eyes deepened.
"I don't know how to be a good husband. I only know how to handle things the way I've always handled things."
The room fell silent.
The noise from the street outside felt like it belonged to another world—distant and unreal.
Katniss looked down at her reflection wavering in the dark coffee. She said nothing for a long time.
Finally, she lifted her head. Her voice was calm. "Now isn't the time for this."
Cedric blinked.
"What we need to do right now is bring Leon to justice."
Katniss set her cup on the table. Her gaze was unwavering.
"Everything else can wait until this is over."
Cedric looked at the fire in her eyes, and something shifted inside him. This woman was far stronger than he'd ever given her credit for.
He nodded. "Okay. Tell me—what's our move?"
---
They talked in that coffee shop for nearly two hours.
Every clue was laid out on the table, pieced together like a puzzle.
"His endgame is to take you down in order to undermine me—make the board lose confidence in my leadership. Once that happens, he steps in and takes control of the York Group."
Katniss stared at the napkin covered in dense handwriting and connecting lines. She was quiet for a few seconds.
Cedric set down the pen. "But he miscalculated one thing."
"What?"
"He doesn't know Lillian flipped. And he doesn't know I've already uncovered the truth about Jason's case."
Cedric looked up at Katniss.
"Right now, he still thinks he's won."
Katniss nodded thoughtfully. "Then we let him keep believing that."
"What are you thinking?"
Katniss lifted her cup, took a sip, and spoke carefully.
"We split up. You focus on gathering evidence of his financial crimes—that's your area of expertise. I'll work the board from the inside. See if there's anyone who could be our ally."
Cedric frowned.
"You approaching board members alone is too dangerous. Leon's been entrenched at the York Group for thirty years. We have no idea how many of them are loyal to him."
"Exactly why I need to find out."
Katniss set her cup down.
"Don't worry. I won't tip him off. I'll approach them as the victim—feel out who's genuinely neutral and who's actually in Leon's pocket."
Cedric opened his mouth to argue, but the resolve in her eyes stopped him. He swallowed the words.
"Fine." He said. "But promise me one thing. If you're in danger, you tell me immediately. Don't try to tough it out alone."
Katniss looked at him and gave a small nod.
---
The next day, a bombshell detonated inside the York Group.
Katniss had retained a lawyer and filed a lawsuit against the York Group—alleging defamation and reputational damage, demanding a public apology and thirty million dollars in compensation.
When the news hit internally, everyone was stunned.
"Ms. Astor actually sued the company?"
"Of course she did. She got suspended without solid proof she leaked anything. Wouldn't you?"
"But isn't she the chairman's wife? What kind of game are these two playing?"
"Who knows. Word is they've been living apart for a while. Probably headed for divorce."
The break room. The elevators. Whispers everywhere.
Some said Katniss had been wronged. Others claimed it was all theater—she was just trying to cash out and disappear.
Rumors flew in every direction. Not a single person knew the truth.
---
Meanwhile, in Leon's office.
His secretary knocked and hurried in, holding out a phone. "Mr. Peterson, you should see this."
Leon took the phone and scanned the headline.
"York Group VP Files Thirty-Million-Dollar Lawsuit Against Former Employer After Suspension."
He read through the article. No surprise registered on his face. Instead, a slow smile spread across it.
He handed the phone back and waved her off. "Got it. You can go."
After the secretary left, Leon leaned back in his chair, hands laced across his stomach, gazing up at the ceiling. Satisfaction settled over him like a warm coat.
Katniss suing the York Group meant she and Cedric had torn each other apart completely.
This would be a fatal blow to Cedric's authority.
The chairman's own wife publicly suing his company. How would the public react? The shareholders? The board?
He picked up his phone, scrolled to Katniss's number, and pressed dial.
Three rings. She answered.
"Hello?"
Her voice sounded tired.
"Katniss, it's me. Uncle Leon."
His tone was warm, concerned—carefully pitched just a shade lower than usual.
"I saw the news. You're suing the company?"
"So what if I am?"
Katniss's voice carried a thread of barely contained anger.
"I gave years to the York Group. Even if I didn't accomplish miracles, I put in the work. And this is how they repay me? I won't stand for it."
"Ah, Katniss. Don't blame me. When you've been in my position long enough, you'll understand—sometimes your hands are tied."
Leon sighed, his voice dripping with sympathy.
"You know the board isn't mine to control alone."