Amelia was baffled. How was this happening on her first day of work? It seemed as if someone was trying to sabotage her. Well, she didn't get a PhD in Business management for nothing.
But first, she needed to get the full story behind this. She started reading the news article and from it, she was able to know that Anna Lopez who was their brand's spokesperson was seen calling one of their products trash.
For this model to have gotten the effrontery to do such and breach the contract, it is either she must have been paid by someone in the company to sabotage it, or she had been hypnotized into doing so. Her guess was the latter.
Dialing the office line, she rang for Antoinette who had gone to bring the minutes of the meeting they had had today. She had planned on testing the capabilities of her secretary later but it seemed the future came too early than intended. Now she'll need to know if she could keep working with her or employ her own person.
“How good are you Antoinette?” She asked. That was her procedure when working with people. She would give them the chance to assess themselves first before she would assess them herself.
“I believe I am very competent and professional in handling my duties, ma. I am willing to learn anything you ask me to do. I may not be as good as other secretaries who have been doing this for a long time, but I have the aptitude and willingness to learn whatever it is that you require of me. Just say the word” Antoinette replied confidently.
“Good” Amelia commended as she took her phone to make a call. “I won't work with someone who has low self-esteem or no sense of who they are or what capabilities they possess.”
A voice spoke out from the other end of the line, “I just saw the news, what do you want me to do?”
“Nothing” she replied. “Whoever is responsible for this will probably be waiting to see my reaction to the news. I want them to panic first and reveal their hidden cards. Only then will I strike them mercilessly”
“As you wish,” the voice said as she cut off the call.
“What I want you to do for me An….. Let me just call you Ann as I don't want to have to strain myself trying to pronounce your name when I need you”
“What you will do for me now is to investigate each and every one of the board members. It says here in your CV, that you are well adept in hacking for information and tracking phone calls. I need you to keep an eye on everyone's phone calls”
“While listening in, any conversation they make that sounds more friendly than normal, you are to report then to me”
“Yes ma,” Ann said as she took note of everything.
“Good! In the meantime, I'll get back to reading this report. Also, reject any meeting from the board of directors for now. Just tell them I'm handling the situation. You can go now”.
“Whoever it is that wants to sabotage me, I won't spare you at all,” she said to herself.
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
At the Brooke's Enterprise
“You got married! And you didn't invite me. If I had not known better, I would say you want to end this friendship. But knowing your heartless self, you don't even care”
The only person who had the guts to talk to Nathaniel like that was no one but his best friend Andrew Reynolds. Nathaniel sat quietly at his desk with no intention of replying to Andrew.
“Quick! Tell me who the unlucky lady is. I wonder how she would feel when she discovers that you have no love to offer her. She probably married you for money anyways so I'm sure she didn't expect love to come with the package”
“You're right,” Nathaniel answered. “Her name is Amelia Brooke and she married me for her personal gain but not because of money”
“Then why did she marry you. Don't tell me she fell in love with your handsome pretty boy face and decided to spend the rest of her life with you. That would be classical indeed”.
“That's enough talking. Don't you have your company to be at? I wonder how you are a CEO but you spend so little time in your office”
“Fine! Fine! I'm leaving. No need to rub it in my face that you are doing better than me. I sincerely hope you do find love in this marriage.”
Just then, Nathaniel’s Secretary Justin came in.
“Have you seen the news, Sir? The Stone Jade Palace stocks have gone down by ten percent.”
“What is the reason for the decline in the price of stocks?”
“Why are you interested in the shares of a small fry company like Jade Stone Palace? They hardly made any increase in profit over the last five years.” Andrew asked but was snubbed by Nathaniel.
“It is caused by a relapse in judgment by their brand's spokesperson. According to the news she was seen defaming their latest jewelry series “Frozen in Time”. I believe Sir that is a result of an internal conflict that has arisen as a result of Mrs. Brooke stepping into the chairman’s position”
“Spoofft!!!!! Andrew spat out the water that he had just drank. “Did I just hear you say Mrs. Brooke as in this devil's wife?”
“I believe you did, Sir,” Justin answered and turned his attention back to Nathaniel. “What do you intend to do about it, Sir?”
“Nothing. If she cannot handle a crisis like this, then I don't think she is fit to take over the chairman's position. Let's wait and see if she cannot solve the problem in a week, then I'll step in”
“You damned devil” Andrew cursed. “If an outsider should hear you they'll think it's your enemy that got into trouble”
“Justin! See this brat out of my office. Ice has already told you many times. Do not allow him into my office in the mornings”
“Yes Sir” Justin replied as he saw Andrew out.
Nathaniel reclined on his chair and brought out a notebook from his desk.
“It seems acquiring the company may not be so difficult after all. Let me wait and see how she would resolve this”
He picked up his phone and called someone. “I need to know the culprit by the end of this week. Get to work and make sure you do this discreetly. No one from the network should know I ever contacted you”.
Amelia studied the files that she had asked for from Ann. She didn't look even one bit worried about the current situation of the company. She knew that whoever did this would be forced to reveal their trump card soon. For now, she could only wait.After going through the files she decided to do something else. When she researched about her husband, she only looked at the information concerning his name and business. If they were to live together, she should at least have ample information about him.Surfing the web, she discovered that there was no personal information about him except that he was Nathaniel Brooke and a rich businessman. No family photos, friends, or friendly gatherings of any sort.Well, she was not surprised. A man of his nature would want to keep his personal information away from the public.Since she was done for the day, she decided to go shopping. She also remembered that she needed to redecorate her home now. Well, she could call the decor company after shoppi
Amelia got home tired from her exchange with Edward. She had never met anyone as brazen as him. She made a note to ask Nathaniel later.Bringing out her phone from her bag. She decided to select a home decor style. She didn't want to wake up in such a creepy house. After browsing for a while, she finally found the one that was acceptable to her eyes and called the decor company to come set it up.The decor company was fast and efficient in doing their job, some hours later. The house was fitted to her taste. Feeling energetic from the bright colors in the room she decided to cook a meal. It wasn't stated in her contract, but she could at least do this for her husband.Nathaniel came home to the smell of homemade food. He was surprised as he never thought that Amelia could cook. He had this notion that businesswomen did not know how to handle housewife duties.He quietly entered the room and showered without alerting her. He came down to the dining room when he was done showering to me
Over the next few days. The company’s stocks continued to drop drastically. Even the press was not helping matters as the news article was voraciously published widely all over the country. It seemed that the person behind this was fanning the flames to force her to step down.The executives of the company had all requested to have a meeting with her over this situation but Amelia had rejected all of them. She remained unbothered as she knew that the person would soon be forced to make a move.Today, she was going to choose a new head for the design department. Out of the two candidates she had considered earlier, one of them showed more aptitude for leadership. And she had even found out that most of the designs in the company were actually his work that the credit had been taken over by the former head.Amelia arrived at the office at eight o'clock that morning and as usual her routine, she went to check on a department in the company. Unlike the other day when she had gone round the
Amelia's eyes narrowed on seeing the news. She had already done a background check on the company and she was sure that the designs for the jewelry did not infringe any copyright laws.The other executives quickly spoke up. “Hurry up and step down from the chairman position. Don't you see that the company is going to tear apart?Amelia gripped her hand on the mug until it had a dent in it. She would never allow the company her mother suffered to build to go down. Never!She shot a cold look across the executives and they all kept quiet as they were terrified. They wondered how a young lady could look so terrifying, but that would not stop them from achieving their aim.Amelia chuckled and said “So tell me now, how would stepping down from the chairman position help solve the current crisis that we are facing? Except one of you is responsible and is seeking to use this opportunity to take over the company?”“What are you saying?” They all chorused. “We are only trying to help you. Be q
At 3:00 pm sharp Amelia was in the meeting room with all the departmental heads. She wanted to be ready for the next move of the company after resolving the issue so proper planning was needed.At this time all the department heads had come up with new strategies for the new phase of the project. They were to present their reports one by one for careful analysis and scrutiny.“The marketing department is unsure of what action to take for now. Our plans involved promoting the Lost in Sun pendant but due to the crisis we are having, publishing anything concerning that would bring our stock prices even lower” Mr. Gregory, the head of the department said.“That would not be a problem,” Amelia said as she handed over a piece of document to Ann. Ann, understanding what she meant, handed it to Mr. Gregory.“I have made plans on how we can make use of the situation to promote our product even further,” Amelia said as she looked at him.Mr. Gregory went over the documents and his eyes widened
The next day Edward barged into Nathaniel's office with a tab in his hands. “Have you seen the latest news?” He asked.“What news? And why did you barge into my office like that? Don't you know I'm working unlike you who doesn't have any work to do” Nathaniel said.“If not that you're my friend and I'm used to your antics I would have definitely gotten angry. Well, we'll settle the scores another day. Quick! Check the headlines on the news” he said as he passed the tab to Nathaniel.Nathaniel huffed and took the tab from him. His eyes widened as he saw the headlines on the news “STONE JADE PALACE SUES VANITY FAIR HOUSE OVER SLANDER”He scrolled down and all the news tabs carried the same news. “VANITY FAIR HOUSE TO APPEAR BEFORE COURT TOMORROW OVER ALLEGATIONS OF SLANDER”.Nathaniel read the news and stretched back the tab to Edward. “So this is why you rushed all the way to my office,” he said coldly.Edward's face grew livid as he punched his fists in the air out of frustration. “I
Amelia decided to stay at the office that day so that she could prepare herself for the court case the next day. She needed to be fully prepared in case of any trick the perpetrator had up his sleeve.The message that popped up showed that it was Mr. Alex that was responsible for the mishap of the company but she had a gnawing feeling that it was more than this.She sighed as she looked at the documents in front of her. She had analyzed the evidence in front of her and with it everything should lead to her success but she felt an unease within her.Ann entered the office to meet her in a daze. The light called on the desk and broke Amelia from her reverie.“I'm sorry ma but Mr. Vincent would like to see you,” Ann said.“Alright send him in” She could be SE some company right now.One of the reasons she was also comfortable staying in the office was because all through the week Nathaniel had stayed at work so the house was very boring and lonely at home. At work, there was Ann and work
The reporters were like hawks ready to eat down their prey as they swarmed her with questions one after the other.“How do you plan on solving the issue of the famous model Anna Lopez calling your jewelry trash”“How can we be sure that your jewelry is authentic and not fake like Anna Lopez described”“How do you expect the public to trust you again after such an incident has occurred”“Do you think all these problems arose because of your incompetence as a CEO to handle the business?”“You have certainly won the case against Vanity Fair House but can you win the case of the pack of trust that has been built by your loyal customers?”Amelia smiled and waited for them to ask their questions before she intervened.“Thank you all for your questions. Today I'll be clarifying the news on our profits that have been circulating in the country”.“Firstly, as you have just witnessed, Stone Jade Palace does not sell pirated works nor do we engage in breaking copyright laws. We are an honest com
Thud! Ann immediately flew some tables away and coughed up blood as Amelia's fast reflexes kicked in and she gave her a flying kick. Ann was mad with anger but was also in a lot of pain. She never expected Amelia to be able to deflect her attack and even cause her such an injury. There was really a lot she didn't know about her and she could not even afford to mess with her.She knew that she was done for and knew that Amelia would probably not let her go so she tried to get up on her feet and run away but she found out that no matter how she tried to get up, she just couldn't. The fall from the kick had been so bad that she had been paralyzed in her lower back and so was not able to get up.She panicked as she tried once again to get up but she couldn't. “What have you done to me you bitch. Why can't I get up? Come and do something. I can't get up. I can't get up” She wailed as she knew that she was finished. Apart from being unemployed, she was now paralyzed. This was just too much.
Ann almost fell from her seat when she saw the photos. She never expected that Amelia was aware of the secret that she had been trying to hide for long. She instantly shivered at the thought of this, Amelia could destroy her life entirely and there was nothing she could do about it.“How did you get those pictures?”“That's not the question you should be asking. I know about everything, your plan to sabotage me. Did you really think that it could escape my notice? You truly haven't learned a thing from being around me. You ought to have learnt something and here I was thinking that you were smart. You are clearly just a dummy.”Ann clenched her teeth. She wanted nothing but to rip the photos in front of her to shreds. She had just gone out for one night of enjoyment and she was being dealt with like this. The only thing left for her was to beg. If she played it well Amelia could forgive her and even help her flush out the person.“I didn't mean to do it. I was being blackmailed by som
“Nothing. Is there anything to feel about him? He is just a business partner.”Ann sighed. It seemed that she may not be able to get anything out of her concerning that. Well, she would find out more when they have eaten to their full. Luckily for her, she had brought a drug to help her deal with the effects of the wine of course she would also try to avoid drinking much but not too little to avoid suspicion.“It seems that you are not interested in romantic relationships.”“Well, you can say that. A relationship is not just for me.”Ann sighed again. “It's a pity. With your beauty, so many men would be dying to have your hand or to be in a relationship with you if you aren't even interested in one.”Ann had never felt jealous about this but she couldn't help her thoughts today as something seemed to change in her when she decided to completely turn against Amelia.“Since you think that the waiter is dashing. Why don't you ask for his number? If it is challenging for you, I can help y
Amelia could not believe her eyes when she saw Ann. Ann was wearing the detective earrings that she had created herself. This was one of the products her company made so how could she not recognize it when she saw it on Ann? Instead of being honest with her, she decided to employ such means.This means that she had already made up her mind. Amelia was no fool. She knew that the snake wanted to gather evidence or have something to hold against her and that was why she planned to record her meeting. Amelia made up her mind to deal with her ruthlessly. The small chick had the mind to betray her and then find incriminating information on her.It was a good thing that she had never thought of including her in her other life, if not it would have been a disaster. She had hoped to help her out of her situation but she was shocked to be met with this kind of behavior. Since this was what she wanted, then she would make sure she suffered direly for the consequences that would befall her.Ameli
Amelia turned to look at him. “Oh, Vincent. He is one of the workers in my company. What's the matter?”“What are you speaking with him so informally? He even called you by your name. Since when is that a proper employer-to-employee relationship.”Amelia's face curved upwards as she gave a small chortle, “He is one of my loyal subordinates and this is how I treat them. Is there a problem with that? Don't you call your female employees by name?”“No I don't” Nathaniel answered his voice becoming frosty.“I call them by the position and role that they have been assigned to play in the company. You should do that too. Maintain a fine line between employee and friends.”“Do you maintain a fine line with your secretary Justin? I don't want to turn this into an argument but I clearly won't listen to you. I have tried this method elsewhere and it has worked perfectly so I don't see the the reason why I shouldn't use it.”“Where?”“Excuse me?”“Where have you tried this technique before? If I
Ann immediately went silent. She panicked as she didn't know what to do or say. Could her boss have found out about what had happened?“Hello, are you still there?” Amelia asked as she got no reply from her.Ann thought of seizing this opportunity to do what she had wanted to do since morning. She had tried to go to the company against the instructions of her boss and was surprised when she was not let in because according to the security personnel. Amelia had ordered that she was not to be in the office today.She was not sure whether Amelia had found out about her deeds and decided to hinder her from coming to the company today because she was aware of what she wanted to do. But hearing the meeting, she was somewhat convinced that she was not as she would have already gotten her arrested. Still with the little time she had got to know her boss. She knew that she was a very calculative person and could have the patience to bring down her enemies in one fell swoop. She shivered at th
On the other hand, Nathaniel did not look tired at all. He looked so relaxed as if the work could not compare to other activities he had engaged in. The only thing that gave the fact that he was involved in some work was the way his clothes were soaked in his sweat.His abs were glaring under his shirt and Amelia couldn't help but feel flustered. She quickly shifted her face to one side so that Nathaniel would not look at her flustered face.Meanwhile, Nathaniel sat down on the floor and was lost in thoughts. There were many strange things about Amelia. He needed to find out more about this person who was his wife. From the investigations he had conducted before marrying her, there was no mention of some things that he now knew. If she was capable of hiding that then she was capable of hiding a lot of things too. First was the fact that she knew business so well as if she had been doing business for a long time. Her expertise showed not only raw talent but also experience. But how an
Amelia turned back to see Nathaniel dressed smartly in a black tuxedo. He looked explicitly charming and she couldn't help but drool at the sight of him. She quickly coughed and brought her head back to normal.“Don't tell me you want us to paint it ourselves.”“You know I don't joke around” Nathaniel answered in a deadpanned voice.Amelia chuckled in amusement. “Don't tell me that you want to paint this room in your tuxedo?”“Of course not. Let me go and change my clothes” Nathaniel said as he entered the private lounge in his office. Soon he came out dressed in casual clothes.Nathaniel then walked up to Justin. “Get the paint and other materials we need now.”Justin immediately went out to gather the things as instructed by Nathaniel.“How do you expect us to paint the room like this? Don't the chairs and other things need to be covered before they get spoiled by the paint? And do you expect us to be the ones to scrape off the paint from the wall? That will take forever and I take
Ann soon arrived at Nathaniel's office. Unlike last time, she was immediately received by one of the staff whom Nathaniel had prepared to receive her beforehand. Amelia followed the private elevator and headed to Nathaniel's office floor of the building. She was surprised to see some people whom she recognized to be painters in the lobby waiting. She immediately walked up to them.“Good morning gentlemen. Please why are you all here and who called you.”A man who seemed to be the head of their group smiled and walked up to her. “Good morning ma. You must be Miss Stone. We have been waiting for you. We were called by Mr. Brooke. He told us to take orders from you when you arrive.”Amelia was surprised. Nathaniel never informed her of this. She was confused as to what was happening. Just then, Nathaniel's Secretary, Justin, came out of Nathaniel's office space. He immediately walked to her. “Good morning ma'am. I have been expecting you. These men here are painters. Mr Brooke has inst