Chapter 8
687words
In the past, I'd focused so much on Karen that I'd neglected the family business.
When you need to purge certain emotions, the quickest method is to redirect that energy elsewhere.
So I channeled everything into work and discovered a joy I'd never noticed before.
I wanted to see our family business thrive under my management, to watch it grow stronger with each decision I made.
I reached out to my father.
This was the fastest way to secure resources for expansion.
When I was young and my parents had just married, I believed he was only with us for the benefits. That belief made me resent him for years.
But he truly loves me—I know that now. He's always sent rare treasures to my mother, and the family's expansion bears the marks of his tireless work.
I shared my development ideas with him. He listened intently, offered thoughtful advice, then assured me I should proceed with confidence, knowing he had my back.
Before ending the call, he added without preamble: "No matter who hurts you, remember that your father is still here."
A lump formed in my throat. "Okay," was all I could manage.
I participated in a business bid with the Werewolf clan. Their advantage was rock-solid credibility and abundant mineral resources. A successful partnership would open doors to even greater opportunities.
Though vampires and werewolves remain natural enemies, in modern society we maintain a peaceful coexistence—at least on the surface.
The potential benefits were enormous, but so was the competition.
I pulled all-nighters with my proposal team, held countless strategy meetings, and finally secured the negotiation opportunity.
They would send representatives to inspect our company and negotiate terms. The final partner would be selected from two finalists.
Our entire company went into high alert mode.
The person leading their delegation was a young man. When I saw him, I froze in recognition.
It was the man from the bar.
His expression revealed nothing, and I maintained my professional demeanor. It had been just a chance encounter over drinks—he'd probably forgotten it already.
I had no intention of mentioning our previous meeting. As the werewolf clan's representative, he clearly possessed strong professional capabilities. Besides, a chance encounter at a bar hardly constituted a relationship.
"Hello, I'm Corbin."
"Alicia," I replied simply.
We exchanged professional smiles.
The introductions went smoothly, but when we finally reached the contract discussion, an unexpected situation arose.
The contract proposal had been finalized overnight and signed by my mother that morning. When I arrived at the office, I'd ordered several copies made, and had confirmed everything was ready just thirty minutes before our competitors arrived.
But now, as we prepared to present the physical contracts, my assistant rushed over and whispered urgently: "The contracts have been soaked with some corrosive liquid."
Corbin sat across from me, smiling pleasantly. "Is something wrong?"
I assured him it was nothing, just a minor hiccup.
"What about the backups?" I asked my assistant quietly.
"All ruined," she whispered back.
There was no time to investigate who was responsible.
"Check the left drawer in my office," I instructed. "There's another copy there."
When I'd signed for my mother that morning, I'd prepared two extra copies—one for photocopying and one I'd kept as insurance.
The meeting proceeded successfully after that. Before leaving, Corbin turned back with a smile. "Miss Alicia, we should have dinner sometime. A celebration."
I knew then that the deal was essentially secured.
I smiled back. "Once the restaurant is decided, Mr. Corbin, please do honor us with your presence."
After seeing Corbin off, I breathed a sigh of relief but knew I needed to investigate what had happened.
This negotiation represented countless hours of company-wide effort. The sabotaged contracts could have been disastrous—while not directly causing failure, they would have severely damaged our professional image.
In short, while we'd dodged a bullet, someone had clearly tried to sabotage us.
My assistant informed me it had been "accidentally" caused by an employee named Lorelei.
