Chapter 9 The Wrong Room
Briar's POV
I spun around to find Sienna standing behind me with a smug smile plastered across her perfect face. "I just wanted to remind you that if Julian hadn't stepped in one year ago, Vance Botanicals would already be part of Montgomery Medical Group."
I felt my jaw tighten but I kept my expression neutral. "Didn't manage to completely swallow up the Vance family, did you? Your brother must have been furious."
Her smile turned sharp and cruel. "Don't get comfortable. Everyone knows you're only keeping that company afloat because of your little arrangement. You traded yourself for a business loan, didn't you? How does it feel to be nothing but collateral?"
She leaned in closer, her voice dropping to a mocking whisper. "And just so you know, Montgomery is partnering with Apex. When that happens, we're going to squeeze Vance out of every market share you have left."
Something inside me snapped. I reached into my handbag and pulled out a small vial of plant essential oil that Eric had given me last week for product testing. It was a prototype lavender concentrate and in its current form, the scent was overwhelmingly strong.
I smiled at Sienna. "Since you're so interested in our company's products, why don't you try this new lavender calming oil?"
Before she could react, I twisted off the cap and tipped the vial forward, pouring several drops directly onto the front of her silver dress. The dark oil spread across the delicate fabric immediately and the sharp medicinal smell hit us both like a physical force.
Sienna shrieked and stumbled backward, her hands flying to her chest where the stain was already setting deep into the material. The concentrated plant extract was so potent that the scent filled the air around us, pungent and eye-watering and impossible to ignore.
"What did you just do?" she screamed, staring down at the ruined dress in horror.
I pulled out my phone and quickly snapped a photo of her standing there with the dark oil stain spreading across her bodice, one hand pressed to her nose and her face twisted in disgust and shock.
"Don't say things you shouldn't," I said calmly. "Or this photo goes to Silverwind Pack so they can see their Alpha's daughter looking so elegant."
Sienna's face went white with rage. "You wouldn't dare—"
I stepped closer and lowered my voice. "Come looking for trouble again and next time I'll pour the entire bottle over your head."
She made a strangled sound of fury, her hands still clutching at the oil-soaked fabric as that overwhelming herbal smell continued to radiate from her dress. Several people nearby had turned to stare and were whispering to each other. Sienna turned and fled toward the exit, the sharp medicinal odor trailing behind her with every step.
I watched her go and felt a grim satisfaction that faded almost immediately. I had just made an enemy of the Montgomery family and they had far more resources than I did.
I made my way back to the Vance Botanicals booth where Lily was staring at her laptop with a worried expression. When she saw me approach, she looked up and shook her head slightly.
"Boss, we've only had a few scattered individual orders come through. The numbers are way below what we projected."
I pulled up the order tracking system on my phone and scrolled through the depressingly short list. A handful of small purchases, nothing from any distributors or major buyers. If we didn't get capital flowing back in soon, the lab operations next month would be in serious trouble.
"At least we still have one option," I said quietly. "Owen's relatives. The Miller family is opening that big pharmacy chain in Emerald District and they sent Owen's cousin to look for suppliers."
Lily nodded slowly. "If it comes down to it, we can use that family connection to secure at least one contract."
I looked around the booth. "Where's Owen?"
Lily's face went pale. "I don't know. I was too busy handling the online inquiries and I forgot to keep an eye on him."
I immediately reached out through our pack link, trying to locate Owen's presence, but all I got was silence. Either he was blocking me or he had gone somewhere beyond our connection range.
"Did he actually go looking for Apex people on his own?" I muttered, feeling anxiety twist in my chest. If Owen approached them trying to negotiate some partnership, Apex would laugh at him and the story would spread through the entire summit. We would look desperate and foolish.
I left Lily at the booth and started searching through the exhibition hall, scanning faces and checking the main ballroom. Owen was nowhere to be found. I sent a quick message through the pack link to Lily asking her to check the restaurant area but she came back with nothing.
That left only the VIP commercial district on the upper level where the major companies had private meeting rooms.
I took the elevator up and stepped into a quieter hallway. I was walking past the expensive doors when suddenly someone grabbed my arm from behind and yanked me backward with brutal force.
I stumbled and spun around to find Chad standing there, his eyes flickering with gold light.
"I haven't settled the score from last time!" he snarled, his fingers digging into my arm hard enough to bruise.
He dragged me further down the hallway toward a section that looked less maintained, where the lighting was dimmer. He shoved me against the wall and pinned both my arms with one hand while his other hand came up to grip my face.
"Get down and lick my boots as an apology," he said, his voice cold and threatening. "This section of the hallway doesn't have surveillance cameras. No one's going to interrupt us."
Selene roared inside my head, demanding blood. I felt her power surge through my body and without thinking I brought my foot up as hard as I could and kicked him directly in the stomach.
Chad gasped and his grip loosened. I wrenched one arm free and kicked him again, this time in the ribs. He doubled over and I used the moment to slip off one of my silver high heels.
I brought the heel down hard across his back, then hit him again on his shoulder. Chad was cursing and trying to shield himself but I was faster.
"Lick your boots?" I shouted, hitting him again. "Someone like you thinks you're qualified?"
Chad finally managed to catch my wrist and he shoved me backward. As I stumbled, he lunged forward and grabbed at my dress, his fingers catching the fabric of my skirt. There was a tearing sound as half the hem ripped away.
I heard footsteps and voices approaching from the other end of the hallway. The door at the far end of the corridor suddenly opened and light spilled out.
I panicked and ran to the nearest door, shoving it open and stumbling inside.
The room went silent. I stood there breathing hard, still gripping my shoe, and slowly looked up.
Several Alpha presences filled the space and their eyes all turned toward me at once. This was clearly a VIP meeting room and the Apex Bio-Solutions logo was displayed prominently on the wall.
Kai sat in the main chair with a cigar between his fingers, his expression shifting to something amused and curious.
Lucian sat in the corner on a sofa, a glass of whiskey in one hand. His gray-green eyes moved from my face down to my torn and disheveled appearance and I saw his eyebrows draw together slightly. His gaze stopped on the ripped fabric hanging from my waist and lingered there for a moment.
Nobody spoke.