Chapter 63Race Against TimeThe blue rays from the laptop covered her face, her eyes flicking over the numbers on the screen and the accounts and balance sheets in front of her. Ximena had been on this for the past few hours, engulfed with too much caffeine than usual. The board meeting was the following day and time was running out for her. “Come on, come on,” she said to herself while trying to rub the sleep out of her eyes. ‘'There must be something here.'’ Her phone rang, it was from Miguel. “Hello, dear, please tell me you have some good news for me,” she said. Miguel's sigh wasn't encouraging.”Good?” She asked, her mind still lost in those land deals that Javier was talking about. “It’s complicated, Xim. Really complicated.” Ximena sighed and dropped back in the chair. “Tell me about it.” “Fine. Do you recall that old industrial area close to your orphanage? Well, it has been sold in bits and pieces within the last few years by different companies, but I am sure they ar
Chapter 64 Backs Against the WallThe motel room was not like the kind of house Ximena was used to, the wallpaper was old and faded and the bed was too soft and lumpy. She sat down and fell on the armchair that was in poor condition as if her strength had left her. “Home sweet home,” Javier grinned, and threw her a bottle of water from the mini-fridge. “For the time being at least.” Ximena drank half of the bottle. "Any word from Miguel?" Javier checked his phone. “He should be here in about twenty minutes. He told me that he collected some of your things from your house when the coast was clear.” “Oh, I hope he remembered my charger”, Ximena said in a low voice while looking at the phone battery that was almost drained. A loud knock on the door startled them, interrupting their discussion. Javier walked slowly towards the door, looking through the peephole and then his shoulders flattened as he sighed. He opened the door to find a messy looking Miguel with a duffel bag in his
Chapter 65Showdown at the BoardroomXimena adjusted the lapel of her blazer, noticing the side rumple due to how she squeezed the clothes into her bag.She was outside the large doors that led to the boardroom, feeling her pulse race like a machine. “You’ve got this,” Miguel whispered beside her, he gently squeezed her arm. She nodded in agreement; taking a deep breath. "Any word from Javier?" Miguel looked at his phone, sitting there on the table, for what felt like the one-hundredth time. ‘'Not yet. We might have to go in with no backup from his secret weapon." "Fantastic," Ximena muttered. She straightened her back, painting her usual CEO’s smile on her face. “Okay then, let me go first.” They pushed the door open, trailing into the lion’s den. Everyone looked at them and the room was very quiet as if waiting for something. Eduardo was sitting at the head of the table with eyes that did not reveal anything. "Ah, Ximena, Miguel’', he said gently. “We were beginning to wonder
Chapter 66Cleaning HouseXimena was facing the audience and with her hands wet, felt her heart beating faster. A large hall of the company was packed with employees eagerly waiting for her with their breaths almost held. She turned to look at Miguel who was grinning at her from the front seat. “Okay people” she began, her voice was shaking at first but as she continued she gained confidence. “You all know the stories; you all saw what has been going on. It has been quite a week, hasn’t it?” There was a slight movement of heads in agreement from the crowd. “Okay, let me get straight to the point. We discovered that this company management is full of fraud, embezzlement, and all sorts of vices that are not very pleasing and I will not sugarcoat it.” She looked at all the items around the room and took a pause. The expressions on some of them were of disbelief, others looked angry while many looked scared. “But here is the reality. I am not quitting. We are going to sort out this
Chapter 67Shaking Things UpYawning, Miguel massaged his eyes and tried to focus on the numbers on the screen. It was midnight, and he was still wading through heaps of financial statements. ‘‘This is worse than we thought,’’ he whispered to himself and wrote another note on the legal pad that was now almost full. The group of experts he had hired to redesign the entire financial structure of the company had been working for weeks. It seemed as if they could find nothing but bad wherever they looked. Hello, sir,” Tony greeted – one of the young analysts. “You may wish to have a look at this. “ Miguel rolled his chair closer and scowled at the spreadsheet that Javier had opened. “Well, that’s not supposed to be there,” he said, pointing at a series of transactions. “Well done, Javier. Mark it for review.” When Tony looked up and went back to work, Miguel could not help feeling a pang of pride. The kid was intelligent; he was one of the fresh talents they hired in the hope of salv
Chapter 68A Deal with the Devil?Ximena walked around her office, her heels tapping the wooden floor with a sound of a metronome. She looked at the clock once again, as if she had never done that before, but the thousandth time. Just on time, the voice of her assistant sounded through the intercom. “Hello, Ma, Mr. Vega is here to see you.” Ximena took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. “Please, let him come in.” The door opened and there entered Alejandro Vega, a man who was the head of Vega Investments. His daughter Sofia, who had first approached her, was right behind him. '‘It is nice to meet you,’' said Alejandro, stretching his hand for a handshake. '‘My name is Alejandro.'’ "Ms. Antonio," he began. “It was good to see you guys on such short notice.” “Of course,” Ximena said quickly, pointing at the shiny conference table in front of them. "Shall we?" Once they were in and seated, Miguel rushed inside the room, panting a little. “Sorry I’m late,” he said, barely
Chapter 69Community MattersXimena was standing at the podium looking at the audience that consisted of very doubtful individuals. The community center was filled to capacity with people including some who sat in the hallway. This wasn’t going to be easy. "Thank you all for coming,” she started, her voice was calm and though she was nervous, it did not reflect in her voice. “I understand that many of you are still angry with our company and its actions in the past and you have all the reasons to be.” There was a low whisper that went through the crowd. Ximena inhaled, and then she began to explain the details of the new community relations program in the company. While discussing the strategies of future investments in the area, creation of new jobs, and the cleanup of the environment, she noticed from the audience, the hope of skepticism and even hatred. When she was done speaking, the entire room was filled with people shouting questions and allegations. “How do we know that t
Chapter 70The Hot SeatXimena’s high heels tapped across the floor as her thoughts sped up more than her walking pace. There was a board meeting in five minutes and she felt like she was going to be executed. “You got this,” she whispered to herself as she adjusted her black blazer and entered the boardroom. Inside, the atmosphere was charged enough to hack a machete through. The directors were also seated uncomfortably around the table with most of them looking worried and some doubtful. At the far end, Miguel gave her a cold smile, devoid of warmth and did not meet the eyes. “Okay,” Ximena started, trying to control the trembling in her voice. "I know we have a lot of issues to discuss, so let’s begin."Over the next hour, she explained the whole complicated situation – the PR disaster, the people’s protests, the political issues. “We are at a crossroads here, and the decisions that will be taken today will determine whether we are going to swim or sink.” The room was filtered
Chapter 165: The Final ReckoningThe night was unusually still, the quiet broken only by the occasional distant car passing by. Ximena had fallen into a light sleep, her body exhausted from the strain of the past few days. But the sudden sound of a floorboard creaking in her apartment jolted her awake.Her heartbeat made a sudden jump to her throat and she glanced toward the living room. The darkness caused by the streetlights outside only appeared to make things even more quiet.The man standing in the doorway leading into the living room was plain to see.Tania.She was standing there, gripping the gun firmly, her eyes were wide open and looked like they had gone mad. Ximena looked paralyzed with a cold feeling running around her body.“Well, well, here we are meeting in person,” Tania spat out her words and was clearly angry. “I knew this would be the moment every time. You never thought that I could do them, did you?”Ximena’s heart beat faster, but she did not allow her tone to
Chapter 164: A Dangerous EncounterMiguel’s fists connected with the first thug’s jaw with a sickening thud, sending the man stumbling back, his head snapping to the side. Ximena watched from her car, her breath caught in her throat. The sound of the scuffle was echoing down the alley, but she couldn't hear anything except for the pure power and perfection in Miguel's movements.He moved like a force of nature: his muscular frame twisting and turning, his every strike landing with purpose. The men surrounding him tried to overpower him, but Miguel was relentless, fury behind each punch.The night air crackled with energy, and Ximena felt a weird mix of terror and awe. She'd never seen this side of him before, yet it didn't faze her.It was the man she'd married once; the man who would go to any length to protect what he loved.In one leap, one of the thugs pounced on him with a crowbar. However, Miguel was quicker, dodging and managing to sweep a leg to drop him to the ground. In o
Chapter 163: The Return of TaniaShe stared at the photo in her hand, her heart racing wildly. How had they gotten this photo? Who watched her? She felt her stomach clench as the creeping feeling of vulnerability clawed at her.Miguel had been supportive, but even his presence could not erase the gnawing anxiety that had settled deep inside her. She could still feel the weight of his comforting words from earlier, but they did little to quell the storm brewing in her mind.Tania had kept silent for too long, and now it was as if the calm had been no more than the quiet before the storm.Miguel had insisted on staying the night, refusing to let Ximena face this alone. Now, as they sat together in her living room, Miguel was talking about taking extra precautions for her safety, adding security to her apartment, increasing surveillance around the office, but Ximena wasn't fully listening.She had heard the same promises before, and while she appreciated them, she couldn’t help but fe
Chapter 162: Shadows ReturnThe next morning, Ximena was back to work, sitting at her desk, her hands fastened on the lid of the portable computer, her fingers drumming the wooden top of the laptop. He had seen her typing away again, probably trying to complete the quarterly reports so that the board meeting in the morning would not consume all the time. Her head was not in the numbers; she was constantly thinking about the peculiarities that had been bothering her all week.The first time she’d noticed it, she thought that perhaps she was imagining it. He had seen a black sedan parked across the street from her building for two consecutive days and the face of the driver was hidden behind the tinted glass. It could have been nothing, but then there were the phone calls; two in the last two days; both of which rang only twice before the line went dead as soon as she picked up.She tried to dismiss it as a mere fluke and went on to telling herself that there was really no need for
Chapter 161: A New NormalXimena sat down comfortably in her chair and looked at the numbers that target the company’s financial performance in the following quarter. The numbers, as he could see, were fine, were good, in fact, were more than good. The Group was on its way up again in Antonio’s life. Things were finally getting a little less insane, and Ximena was able to concentrate.This lack of drama seemed to them in some way wrong, even unnatural. Living on a daily edge, ready to face the next storm, she found the lack of tumult... dangerous. But was this not what she had wanted?Her phone was ringing on the desk and she had to remove herself from her line of thinking. A message from Clara lit up the screen: “Meeting at 11:30. Coffee on the way.”Ximena, still smiling, thanked her. “Thanks, lifesaver.”Clara was not wrong, after a year, the world seemed to have returned to its normal state.Miguel came to see her later in the morning that same day with a box of pastries and a
Chapter 160: Shadows Closing InMiguel paced back and forth, his frustration evident in the sharp clicks of his shoes against the polished floor. “She’s up to something. She always is. But I can’t risk dismissing this if it’s tied to Vega.”Ximena crossed her arms over her chest, easing back into her chair. "You're giving her too much credit. This is Tania we're talking about; a master manipulator. She wants you to believe she's our ally just so she can stay close."Miguel stopped pacing and faced her. "What if this time she's telling the truth?"What if she isn't?" Ximena shot back. "Every time we let her in, she leaves chaos in her wake."______________________________________Late that afternoon, Gregorio joined them in Ximena's office. His arrival brought much-needed clarity, though his face was as tense as theirs."I did some digging after Tania's sudden appearance," Gregorio began, placing a file on the desk. "And it seems she's not bluffing entirely."Ximena's eyes slitted a
Chapter 159: A Desperate MoveTania hesitated for a moment before turning on her heel and walking away, her laughter echoing in the empty street.Miguel turned to Ximena, his jaw tight. “Are you okay?”Ximena nodded, though her hands were still trembling. “Let’s just go.”…………………………………..Ximena was staring out the window of Miguel's car. Her reflection fluttered with the streetlights as they speed-crossed the city.Miguel has his hands clutched tight over the wheel. His knuckles were white. He glanced over to her and his jaw clenched. "You haven't said a word since we left. What is going on inside that head of yours?""What's the word of the day?" Ximena replied in a quiet tone. "That I don't want to play this any longer? That I'm tired of being a target?"Miguel let out a soft breath, his eyes remaining on the road. "You are not alone in this, you know that, right?"Ximena looked at him. "Do I? Because lately, it's feeling like I'm fighting for myself."Miguel was thinking of a come
Chapter 158: Countdown to ChaosSleep was out of the question. Ximena’s instincts told her this was more than another scare tactic.By the time the sun rose, she was already seated at her dining table with her laptop open and a steaming cup of coffee beside her. The clock ticked ominously as if counting down to an unseen disaster.Her phone buzzed, pulling her out of her thoughts. Miguel’s name lit up the screen.“Morning,” she said, trying to mask her exhaustion.“Did you sleep at all?” Miguel’s voice was tinged with concern.“Not really,” she admitted, rubbing her temples. “The message... I can’t stop thinking about it.”“Neither can I,” Miguel said. “But we have a plan, Ximena. We’re ahead of them.”“Are we?” Ximena asked, doubt creeping into her voice. “Or are we just reacting to whatever they throw at us?”Miguel caught himself and responded in a lower tone. "Meet me at Antonio's Group. Gregorio probably has more news for us."______________________________________The middle o
Chapter 157: Tightening the GripXimena sat at her desk, staring blankly at her calendar. She'd spent all morning moving meetings around, trying to make sense of a schedule that had begun to feel utterly meaningless under the mounting threats.A knock at the door pulled her from her thoughts. Clara peeked in, the shine gone now from her face since the events of the past couple of days."Miss Antonio, Gregorio is here," Clara said quietly.Ximena nodded, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “Send him in.”Gregorio entered, his ever-practical briefcase in hand. “Morning, Miss Antonio. Miguel should be joining us shortly. We’ve got some developments you’ll want to hear about.”Ximena gestured for him to sit. “Developments?”Before he could answer, Miguel strode into the room, his expression grim but focused.“Let’s hear it,” Miguel said, taking a seat beside Ximena.Gregorio opened his briefcase, pulled out a few files, and laid them across the desk. "We have located Vega's