Chapter 27: The First Move"Good."Adrian set the report down and leaned back in his chair.A week ago, he had still been dealing with divorce papers, accusations, and endless drama.Now he was sitting on the top floor of Orion Holdings overlooking the entire city.The difference felt surreal.For three years, his world had revolved around Vanessa.Her company, ambition, family and her dreams.But now?Adrian stared at the sprawling skyline beyond the glass windows. For the first time in years, he wasn't building someone else's future.He was building his own.Across from him, Emilia sat with several reports spread out before her."The latest projections came in this morning."Adrian nodded.He didn't even need to read them because he already knew what they would say.Lawson Construction was running out of road.The company had always looked successful from the outside, but Adrian knew better than anyone how fragile it truly was.Vanessa had spent the last year expanding aggressively

Marcus sat alone in his office, staring at his phone.The conversation with Vanessa earlier continued replaying in his mind. Three major contracts gone at the same time that was really bad and worse still Vanessa was depending on him. The situation was far worse than he had initially imagined. He had just wanted to have the time of the life with Vanessa before the end of the year. He had fallen out of favor with his father overseas and had been sent back as punishment until he performs well. Although he was a staff one one of the big corporations that withdrew their contract he had no influence on the board. He was just a junior marketing officer. The only on person that could help him in this was Ethan. After hesitating for several minutes, Marcus finally scrolled through his contacts and stopped at a particular contact. Ethan Graves.The second-generation heir of the Graves family. His position as the heir has not been confirme for now was far from secureHis older half-broth

The atmosphere inside the Lawson family villa was unusually tense.Everyone had a solemn expression on their faces. There was no laughter, casual conversations.The long dining table was occupied by nearly every major shareholder within the family, yet the room felt colder than ever.Vanessa sat quietly at one end of the table. Her complexion looked pale.The dark circles beneath her eyes had become difficult to hide.In just one week, Lawson Construction's situation had deteriorated far beyond her expectations.The stock price had fallen another twenty percent.Several subcontractors had suspended work due to unpaid invoices.Banks had begun requesting additional guarantees.And rumors of insolvency were spreading throughout the industry.For the first time since taking control of the company, Vanessa felt cornered.A heavy silence lingered over the room.Then one of her uncles slammed a folder onto the table."Enough!"The sudden outburst startled several people.The middle-aged man

Marcus guided Vanessa back into her office.The moment they entered, Vanessa closed the door behind them and sat down heavily in her chair.Her eyes were still red.Marcus pulled out a chair opposite her. "Vanessa."She looked up."You need to stay calm and we'll figure this out."Vanessa nodded absentmindedly.Then suddenly, she spoke. "What if Adrian is behind all of this?"Marcus froze.The question caught him off guard and for a brief moment, his expression stiffened, the thought had crossed his mind earlier. The timing was strange from when the contracts started falling through but after thinking about it countless times, Marcus always arrived at the same conclusion.Impossible.He shook his head. "There's no way." Marcus almost laughed."We're talking about Adrian. A month ago, he was a stay-at-home husband. He spent three years living off your income. How exactly would someone like that influence Orion Holdings?" His tone carried obvious disbelief.Vanessa fell silent.Marcus

Inside the CEO's office, Emilia set down her tablet and looked toward Adrian."Just as you predicted." A faint smile appeared on her face. "The market reacted exactly the way you expected."Adrian looked up from the documents."How bad?"Emilia slid a report across the table."Lawson Construction's stock has fallen another thirty percent.""The company's valuation is now less than half of what it was before the crisis."Adrian casually glanced at the figures with n surprise appeared on his face.Everything was proceeding according to plan.The moment the subcontractors began pulling out and the market sensed liquidity problems, panic was inevitable.At that moment— Knock. Knock.A staff member entered the room."Miss Emilia." Emilia looked up."What is it?""The CEO of Lawson Construction is here. She says she has an appointment regarding Orion Holdings' acquisition offer."A smile slowly appeared on Emilia's face."That was fast."Across from her, Adrian remained calm.The fish had fi