Chapter 265
Chapter 265
But she let a grateful smile spread across her face.
"Uncle Leon, thank you. Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease."
---
At that same moment, Cedric sat in an unremarkable black sedan parked across the street from the café.
A laptop rested on his thighs, the screen displaying a real-time audio waveform.
Through his earpiece, Katniss and Leon's conversation came through crystal clear. Every word.
He pressed the call button and spoke to the person on the other end. "Signal's clean. Go ahead."
A brief acknowledgment. The line went dead.
Cedric removed the earpiece and leaned back against the seat, his gaze fixed on the café's floor-to-ceiling windows.
Through the glass, he could see Katniss and Leon sitting across from each other, chatting and laughing—the picture of easy rapport.
After a while, he looked away and opened his phone, scrolling to the last message from the private investigator.
[Got the transaction records from Leon's offshore accounts. Will have them to you within three days.]
Cedric turned off the phone and closed his eyes.
The fish had bitten. Now all that was left was to reel it in.
---
Over the next week, everything moved according to plan.
Katniss began making frequent visits to a law firm, spending over an hour each time. She always emerged looking grim, walking fast.
Word spread through the York Group like wildfire.
"Looks like Ms. Astor's serious this time. She hired the top litigation attorney in the city."
"Right? I ran into her the other day—tried to say hi and she completely ignored me."
"Figures. She probably hates the York Group so much she can't stand the sight of any of us."
Leon listened to the rumors with deep satisfaction.
His secretary reported Katniss's movements to him daily. As far as he was concerned, everything was firmly under his control.
The more aggressively Katniss pursued the lawsuit, the more cornered Cedric became.
When the shareholders' meeting arrived, Leon would drop his prepared materials like a bomb. Even if Cedric survived, he'd be gutted.
---
Outside the law firm.
Katniss pulled out her phone, cleared her throat, found a number in her call history, and dialed.
"Uncle Leon, is this a good time?"
Her voice carried an edge of urgency.
"I just left the lawyer's office. There are some things I need to discuss with you in person."
Leon set down his pen and leaned back. "What is it? What happened?"
"It's too complicated for the phone. Are you free tonight? Same place?"
A beat of consideration. "Fine."
"Great. See you tonight."
After hanging up, Leon gazed out at the darkening sky. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
The more desperate Katniss became, the more irreparable her rift with Cedric. Exactly the outcome he wanted.
---
Eight o'clock. Leon arrived at the café right on time.
Katniss was already there, seated in the same corner as before, a cup of coffee in front of her.
She looked restless—her fingers tracing the rim of her cup in nervous circles. When Leon walked in, she stood quickly and waved him over.
"Uncle Leon, over here."
Leon sat down across from her and studied her face with concern. "You don't look well. What's going on?"
Katniss bit her lip and lowered her voice. "Uncle Leon, when I met with my lawyer today, he told me something."
"What?"
"He said that if we want to successfully remove Cedric at the shareholders' meeting, my lawsuit alone won't be enough. We need someone on the inside to provide stronger evidence—ideally documents proving Cedric made serious errors in major decisions."
Leon's eyes narrowed slightly. He didn't rush to respond.
Katniss pressed on. "I've thought it over. The only person at the York Group with access to that kind of core documentation is you. Uncle Leon, do you actually... have something like that?"
Leon paused. His gaze lingered on her face for several seconds.
He was reading her—trying to determine whether this woman was truly cornered, or testing him.
Katniss met his stare head-on, her eyes burning with the recklessness of someone who had nothing left to lose.
"Uncle Leon, I've come too far to turn back. If you have something, I need you to give it to me. I need it to convince more board members to stand with us."
Leon was quiet for a moment, then spoke slowly. "Katniss, do you know why I'm willing to help you?"
Katniss shook her head.
"Because you remind me of myself when I was young."
Leon leaned back, his gaze drifting somewhere distant.
"Stubborn. Relentless. Someone steps on you, you step right back. That kind of fire—that's what keeps you alive in business."
He paused, dropping his voice.
"I do have some things. Three years ago, Cedric pushed through the acquisition of Worston Properties at a premium exceeding thirty percent above market valuation. It cost the company two hundred million dollars."
"Board members objected at the time. He overruled them. I kept the valuation report and the board's dissenting opinions."
Katniss's heart lurched, but her expression stayed focused. "Is there more?"
"His overseas expansion plan. Lost fifty million dollars in three months. The VP running that project warned him the risk was too high. He didn't listen."
Leon lifted his cup and took another sip. "These materials are more than enough to make the board question his competence."
"Can you give them to me?"
Leon set the cup down and looked at her, a glint of amusement in his eyes. "I can. But I have one condition."
"Name it."
"After this is done, you do exactly what you said—walk away from the York Group. Far away."
Leon's voice was calm, as though stating something self-evident.
"I'll make sure you get a generous settlement. Enough to live comfortably for the rest of your life. But you can't hold any shares in the York Group."
Katniss blinked, then set her jaw. "Uncle Leon, I never planned on going back."
Leon smiled, satisfied.
He reached into his briefcase, pulled out a manila envelope, and slid it across the table.
"These are some copies. Look them over. The rest I'll hand over right before the shareholders' meeting."
Katniss took the envelope without opening it and slipped it directly into her bag.
"Uncle Leon, thank you."
---
By the time Katniss got back to her apartment, night had fully settled in. Only then did she pull out the manila envelope.
She carefully broke the seal and slid out the documents.
Just as expected—the valuation report from Cedric's acquisition of Worston Properties and the board meeting minutes. She skimmed through them and confirmed that Leon hadn't lied.
The report did flag the inflated purchase price. And Cedric had indeed forced the acquisition through over the board's majority opposition.