The morning sunlight streamed through the hotel suite's floor-to-ceiling windows, highlighting Serena's pale face. She sat on the sofa, a cup of black coffee in hand, her gaze as cold as ice. Caleb stood before her, reporting the interrogation results in a low voice: "The contact mentioned Richard's name. Serena, your uncle… he's involved."
Serena's fingers tightened slightly, the coffee cup trembling faintly in her grip. She was silent for a few seconds before looking up, her voice low and frigid: "Richard? He really dared."
She lifted the cup, stood, and walked to the window, her eyes fixed on the distant Voss Group building. That tower was her father's life's work, now transformed into a battlefield where she clashed with the family's wolves. Richard, her uncle—a man polished on the surface but ravenous within—had dared to send an assassin after her. The realization stabbed into her chest like a blade, igniting her fury.
"Caleb," Serena turned, her tone brooking no argument, "I want him gone from the company—completely. Wipe out his influence, his base, every last piece."
Caleb nodded, a glint of resolve in his eyes. "I understand. Tell me what to do, and it's done."
That day, Serena assembled her trusted team—several of her father's loyal old guard, plus Caleb. She took the head of the conference table, opened her laptop, and tapped the keys swiftly, pulling up a file. "Richard's been planting his people in the company for years. The finance department has his spies, and he's got shares in overseas operations. I've tracked it down—Henry's his man, and James in marketing's been taking his money."
She paused, a cold smirk curling her lips. "Today, we strike."
Over the next few hours, Serena moved with ruthless precision. She called an emergency board meeting, citing financial embezzlement to oust Henry; the evidence was ironclad, and he was escorted out by security without a chance to protest. Next, she froze several of Richard's hidden accounts, severing his cash flow. By afternoon, she gathered the shareholders and played a recording of Richard's illicit dealings with outside investors, thrusting him into the spotlight.
"Serena, you can't do this!" Richard roared over the phone, his voice nearly unhinged. "I'm your uncle—this company has half my blood in it!"
"Blood?" Serena leaned back in her office chair, cutting him off coldly. "When you sent someone to put a gun to my head, did you remember I was your niece? Richard, your game's over."
She hung up, rubbing her temples, but there was no trace of triumph on her face. She knew this was far from finished.
Sure enough, trouble followed. Richard's loyalists struck back. A few board members banded together, claiming her actions were "procedurally invalid" and demanding a new meeting to review her decisions. Several mid-level managers abruptly resigned en masse, taking critical data with them. Worse still, someone leaked the company's internal chaos to the media, causing the stock to drop 3% before the market closed.
Serena stood at her office's floor-to-ceiling window, watching reporters swarm below, her brows knit tight. Caleb stepped in, speaking quietly: "I've checked it out—James was the leak. He spoke to Richard yesterday and bolted today."
"Bolted?" Serena turned, a chill flashing in her eyes. "Richard's roots run deeper than I thought. Twenty years in the company—he's not something I can uproot in a day."
She walked to her desk, picked up her phone, and scrolled through messages. Internal betrayal, external pressure, and the mysterious force backing Richard—she was stretched thin facing it all alone. She needed help, a powerful ally.
"Caleb," she looked up at him, "do you know any strong companies? One that could team up with us to take on whoever's behind Richard."
Caleb hesitated, then frowned in thought. "There's one… Steele Group. Lucian Steele's the boss. He's an investor in the Group and has impressive resources. But he's not easy to deal with."
"Steele Group?" Serena's eyes narrowed, a vague impression surfacing in her mind. She'd heard of Lucian Steele—a cold, commanding man rumored to control half the underworld. If she could win him over, it might tip the scales.
"Good." She nodded decisively. "Set it up. I want to meet him."
Caleb opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he just nodded. "I'll arrange it right away."