Liam's POVI called a meeting right away, and told Claire to get everyone to the boardroom fast, because I was mad about those papers I found, the ones showing slush funds tied to Vivian and two other shareholders.I grabbed the stack I’d saved from the shredder, walked to the boardroom, waited for everyone to sit, then smacked the papers on the table as hard as I could and started talking.“These files prove why the company almost went under, they show money hidden in accounts by Vivian and two others,” I said, looking around to make sure they heard me, nobody spoke.Vivian looked at Christopher, who sat there quietly, Claire didn’t say anything either, and that was what I wanted, to be in charge.“Vivian, I don’t want to hear about keeping evidence, you drop everything you have against Charles, because we can’t let him take over,” I said, keeping my voice clear so she knew I meant it.Vivian tried to speak, but a shareholder, a guy with glasses, spoke first. “Charles has papers too,

Liam's POVThe quiet in the room felt a little bit clogged up after Elijah’s words. He was not okay with any of this and I could see it on his face. We were both standing there and neither of us knew what to do next.The situation was bad and we were in the middle of it with no clear way out.Elijah spoke again and his voice sounded extremely urgent and I knew he was talking from a place of fear. “You have money now Liam, a lot of money, but that does not matter if this man dies. If he dies we will go to prison. We will stay in jail for a long time for this. Do you understand that?” He said.I was stuck between choices and my mind was busy doing nothing other than remind me of how my heart beats fast.The main thought in my head was that I wanted Michael gone. He knew things he should not know and that made him a problem. But Elijah was right about prison and I knew that too.I did not answer him right away so Elijah said my name again but louder. He said, “Liam,” and the sound cut t

Liam's POVI walked out of the hospital knowing that all my plans would be ruined if I made one mistake. Seeing Benita lying there pretending to be sick and Charles studying my face like he was trying to solve a puzzle made me realize how dangerous this situation had become.Claire's expression when I told her she had to choose between her family and the company kept playing in my mind as I headed back to where I had left Michael.He was still sitting in the same spot where I had told him to wait, looking around nervously and checking his phone every few seconds. When he saw me approaching, his face lit up with that fake smile he always wore when he wanted something.I thought about what Claire had said earlier about making friends with Michael and what Michael himself had said about wanting to be my main man. The more I considered it, the more I realized that if I ever said yes to his request, Michael would know almost everything I was doing.He would be involved in every decision, e

Claire's POVI waited for Liam outside the conference room, checking my watch every few seconds and rehearsing what I wanted to say to him about protecting his identity. When he finally walked in, I immediately dragged him to a corner where we could speak privately without anyone overhearing us."I don't care where you got your money," I started, but before I could finish explaining my loyalty to him, he surprised me with something I never expected."I want Elijah to disguise himself as the new owner of Harrington Tech," he said.I stared at him in complete shock. Immediately I knew this was a very bad idea, because that was exactly what had killed my father. Trust had destroyed everything my father worked for.Trust in people who pretended to care about him while they plotted behind his back had cost him his life and nearly destroyed his company."Liam, you can't do this," I said, trying to keep my voice quiet and also carry a sense of urgency. "You're making a huge mistake. You don't

Liam's POVI was still wishing I had killed Michael that night when the woman turned to me with urgency written all over her face."There's no time," she said sharply, then she turned to Michael with a completely different tone. "Your father wants you home because your grandfather wanted to see you."Then she looked back at me and gestured toward the door."You need to follow me right now."But before we could leave, she pointed at Michael and her voice became cold and strikingly commanding."You stay back because I don't want to be seen with you."I wanted to ask Michael dozens of questions about his family and what kind of people they were and why his sister was treating him like he was some kind of embarrassment, but I could see from her expression that now was not the time for explanations.I was reluctant at first because following strangers to unknown locations seemed like the kind of mistake that could get me killed, but something about the woman's urgency made me think this wa