Chapter 235 Happy ending(not)

Chapter 235 Happy ending(not)
THIRD PERSON’S POV.

Of the three lawyers, only Bill seemed fazed by Sarah’s announcement. The troubled expression on his face was enough proof that he did not approve of her decision.

“It’s understandable that you want to take some time off for your baby,” Bill cleared his throat. “But like Pearson just said, this really is the worst possible time to announce a resignation.”

“And what do you suggest?” Sarah asked, folding her arms across her chest.

“Right now it’s too sudden. People will wonder what’s wrong. I suggest you hold on for another week before we make it public.”

“Oh please,” Horace shot to his feet. “She doesn’t need to wait another second, especially if we already have somebody to replace her with. She can stop working this very second and the company won’t suffer.”

“But we do not have a candidate to replace her with.” Bill argued.

“Bill, are you trying to be difficult?” Horace asked, a frown settling across his features. “It’s not rocket science who the next in line is.”

That was true. Bill knew for a fact that Horace was the obvious candidate for CEO. Everyone knew.

But there was something else Bill knew that no one else did.

And because of that, he also knew what was truly at stake.

He cleared his throat and made to speak again, but Sarah raised a hand, cutting him off.

“Horace is right, Bill,” Sarah said, shooting Horace a stern look. “The seat of CEO seems to come with death. And with two CEOs dead within a year, I have to stay away from it so I don’t suffer the same fate as they did.”

Bill nodded. He couldn’t argue with that. Sarah had every right to protect her unborn baby. It was what any mother would do.

A beat of silence passed before Horace spoke again.

“Well, Sarah, it’s been fun working under you, and I wish you a safe delivery and all the best in your future endeavors.” He returned her scowl with a smile so wide it reached every corner of his face.

“Now let’s get to the serious part of this meeting.” He turned to the lawyers. “You need to elect a new CEO immediately.”

Bill’s face paled.

This was the exact reason he had been fighting against Sarah’s resignation.

“Hold your horses, Horace,” Sarah responded. “With this much eagerness, one would think this had been your plan all along. Get rid of everyone so you can become next in line.”

“Sarah, please.” Horace scoffed. “This is no time for your conspiracy theories. Matter of fact, you shouldn’t even be in here for this part of the meeting, but we’re allowing you to stay because of the position you once held. That doesn’t mean we can’t still ask you to leave. So I’d suggest you sit quietly.”

Anger coursed through Sarah. Her breath hitched, and her hand balled into a fist at her side.

But she still returned to her seat without another word.

Because at the end of the day, Horace was right.

She no longer had a seat at the table.

“Sarah may no longer be able to object, but I can,” Bill replied. “And I say we cannot make any declaration today until I meet with the other lawyers and the rest of the board, after which we can reconvene in a couple of days.”

“That’s preposterous!” Pa Benedict shouted, slamming both hands against the center of the table. “Horace is right here, and you can make the declaration right now, so why do we need to reconvene?”

“For starters, we still have to authorize the change of signatory and put several important things in place,” Bill argued.

“Those are things that can be done within the hour. You don’t need days for that.”

“Yes, but..”

Bill’s words died in his throat after Spencer tapped him lightly on the shoulder.

“What are you doing?” she whispered, low enough that only Bill and Joseph—the third lawyer—could hear. “Are you intentionally trying to delay the handover?”

“Yes,” Bill whispered back. “I wish I could explain why, but you both just have to trust me on this.”

Spencer and Joseph exchanged a worried glance.

“But it doesn’t make sense,” Joseph said. “Horace is the only legitimate heir since Clara has already stated that she isn’t interested.”

“I know. I’m not disputing the fact that the title belongs to Horace by right. I’m only asking you both to trust me when I say we need to wait.”

The weight behind Bill’s words revealed far more than he was willing to say aloud.

Sarah watched him the entire time, wondering what it was Bill could possibly be hiding.

“Alright then,” Joseph cleared his throat as he rose to his feet. “After speaking with my colleagues, we’ve decided there are still a few things we need to put in place before selecting the next CEO. So, as Attorney Bill has suggested, we will adjourn this meeting until next week. Thank you all for coming in today. Enjoy the rest of your day.”

The boardroom emptied almost as quickly as it had filled earlier that morning. Directors and shareholders filed out, already whispering amongst themselves.

But two people remained behind.

Sarah stared at Bill across the conference table while Bill deliberately avoided meeting her eyes.

“What’s going on, Bill?” Sarah finally asked after several seconds of silence.

“I don’t know what you mean,” Bill replied.

“Come on, Bill. I know there’s a deeper reason you’re delaying the election of a new CEO. Tell me what it is.”

Her eyes never left his.

“I can’t tell you yet,” he answered quietly. “Everything will be unveiled in good time, Sarah. We all just have to be patient.”

And with that, Bill walked out, quietly closing the door behind him with a soft click.

~ ~ ~

“Cheers to us,” Pa Benedict laughed as he handed a glass of scotch to Horace. “After years of planning and scheming, we finally have Gregory Enterprise in our possession.”

Horace accepted the glass.

“We don’t really have it in our possession yet though, remember?”

“It’s only a matter of days now. Once the lawyers finish their legal arrangements, you’ll finally sit in the CEO’s chair. And this time, it’ll be for good because there’s no one left to stop us.”

“Hm,” Horace murmured, raising the chilled glass to his lips.

“Is something the matter?” Pa Benedict asked.

“Maybe not,” Horace replied. “But after every evil thing we did to get here… it all feels so…” His voice trailed off.

“So what?”

“It feels small.” Horace shrugged. “I expected this moment to feel more monumental.”

“That’s because you haven’t seen the wire transfer that’ll hit your Swiss account once we officially ship out our first batch of contraband.” Benedict chuckled. “Speaking of which, you need to start expanding the operation we’ve been quietly running through the subsidiary logistics company.”

Horace looked up.

“Isn’t it still too soon?”

“Too soon?” Benedict scoffed. “Horace, like I told you before, there’s nobody left who’s going to stop us now. So we either go big or go home.”

His eyes hardened.

“Or are you getting soft on me, Horace?”

“No, sir.” Horace immediately shook his head. “Of course not. When are the drug lords delivering the container of meth?”

“Next week. The moment you’re officially named CEO, you’ll sign off on the shipment, and the drugs will leave hidden inside the same containers as the olive oil extracts.”

A slow smile spread across Horace’s face, washing away the last traces of uncertainty.

“The border guards won’t even bother checking our shipment,” he said. “No one would ever expect the Gregory name to be linked with drug trafficking.”

“Cheers to that.”

They both laughed as their glasses clinked loudly behind the office doors.

But maybe Horace had been right to feel uneasy.

Maybe the tiny voice quietly warning him to remain vigilant wasn’t wrong after all.

Because in Monterra, happy endings are never really happy.