Divorcing the useless son in law ; The return of the Tycoon

Freedom

Meanwhile, on the top floor of the Ollivier Group tower, the mood was celebratory.

Lucian was popping a bottle of expensive vintage champagne, pouring two crystal flutes, and handing one to Seraphine with a brilliant, charming smile.

"To your freedom, my queen," Lucian toasted, clinking his glass against hers. "You finally cut off that dead weight. Now, nothing can stop us from dominating the entire market!"

Seraphine took a small sip of the cold champagne, but her smile was somewhat forced. She looked over at the edge of her desk.

The cheap cardboard box sat there, small and pathetic beside the huge bouquet of red roses. Inside, the single pink candle on the strawberry cupcake remained unlit.

She remembered the look in Caelum's dark eyes right before he turned his wheelchair around. There had been no anger in his face. No hatred. No sadness. There had only been an absolute, terrifying emptiness.

It was the look of a man who had completely wiped her existence from his heart.

"Seraphine? Are you listening to me?" Lucian's smooth voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Ah, yes! Sorry, Lucian," Seraphine said quickly, shaking her head. "I was just thinking about tomorrow's delivery schedules. Our main raw material supplier, V-Core Materials, is scheduled to deliver fifty tons of high-grade steel to our northern factory at dawn."

Lucian waved his hand dismissively with a laugh. "Forget about delivery schedules tonight! V-Core has been doing business with you for two years. They love you! Tomorrow morning, we sign the contract for our new joint tower, and then we announce our partnership to the press."

Suddenly, the double wooden doors of Seraphine's office were slammed open with a loud BANG!

Seraphine's mother, Marguerite Ollivier, rushed into the room. She was wearing a heavy mink coat and gold jewelry, but her face was pale with pure panic. Behind her was Seraphine's cousin, Dagny, clutching an iPad in her shaking hands.

"Seraphine! Oh my goodness, Seraphine!" Marguerite cried out, clutching her chest. "Something terrible is happening!"

Seraphine set her glass down on the desk, her brow furrowing deeply. "Mother? What are you talking about? What happened?"

Dagny stepped forward, holding out the iPad with a trembling arm. "Seraphine, look at this! V-Core Materials just issued an emergency corporate notice ten minutes ago!"

Seraphine snatched the tablet from Dagny's hands and scanned the red text flashing across the official corporate portal.

TERMINATION OF SERVICES NOTICE

Effective immediately, V-Core Materials Holdings hereby terminates all supply contracts, logistics support, and material credit lines extended to the Ollivier Group. All pending shipments are canceled. All outstanding invoices must be settled in full within twenty-four hours.

Seraphine felt the blood drain completely from her face. Her head began to spin.

"This... this is impossible!" Seraphine gasped, her voice trembling. "V-Core is our largest supplier! They supply eighty percent of our factory raw materials! Why would they terminate us without any warning?"

"It gets worse!" Dagny squeaked in terror. "First National Bank just called our chief financial officer! They are revoking our ten-million-dollar credit line! They said the private guarantor who backed our loan for the past three years withdrew his backing twenty minutes ago!"

Marguerite grabbed Seraphine's arm, her voice rising in a screech. "Seraphine! If we don't have raw materials and credit, our factories will shut down by tomorrow afternoon! We will be ruined! We will lose everything!"

Seraphine's hands shook violently as she stared at the iPad. She couldn't breathe. How could this happen? Everything had been perfect just one hour ago! Her company was strong! Her luck was unstoppable!

Suddenly, she turned her head and looked at Lucian.

"Lucian!" Seraphine cried out, her eyes full of desperate hope. "Lucian, you must help me! You have grand connections in the capital! Your family is rich and powerful! Call your contacts at V-Core! Tell them to stop this cancellation!"

Lucian's confident smile froze instantly. A flicker of panic flashed across his eyes, but he quickly covered it up, adjusting his suit jacket.

"Ah... yes! Of course, Seraphine!" Lucian said quickly, pulling out his smartphone. "V-Core's regional manager is a good friend of mine! We had golf together last month! Don't worry at all! I will call him right now and fix this little misunderstanding!"

Lucian stepped out onto the balcony, pressing his phone to his ear.

Seraphine, Marguerite, and Dagny stood inside the office, waiting in tense, terrifying silence. Five minutes passed. Then ten minutes.

Through the glass balcony doors, Seraphine could see Lucian waving his arm wildly, his face turning red as he yelled into his phone. Then, he slowly lowered his phone, looking completely stunned and panicked.

He walked back into the room, sweating heavily despite the cool air conditioning.

"Lucian?" Seraphine asked, stepping forward. "What did he say? Is the delivery coming?"

Lucian swallowed hard, avoiding her eyes. "He... he hung up on me. He said... he said the order to destroy Ollivier Group came directly from the ultimate owner of V-Core itself. He said even the board of directors doesn't have the power to change it."

"What?" Marguerite shrieked. "Who is the ultimate owner of V-Core?"

"I don't know!" Lucian yelled, wiping sweat from his forehead. "V-Core is owned by a giant private holding conglomerate! Nobody knows who the real boss is!"

Seraphine fell back against her desk, her knees turning to jelly. Her eye caught the small cardboard box sitting quietly in the corner.

For three years, her company had enjoyed unbelievable, magical luck. Every time she faced a crisis, a mysterious loan appeared. Every time she ran out of materials, V-Core offered her a discount. Every time a competitor tried to crush her, they suddenly backed down.

And now, the very hour Caelum signed the divorce papers and walked out of her life... all of her luck had vanished into thin air.

A sudden, terrifying thought flashed through Seraphine's mind, so crazy that it made her heart freeze.

Could... could Caelum have something to do with this?

She immediately shook her head, dismissing the thought with a bitter scoff.

No. That was completely absurd. Caelum was just a crippled, penniless man who couldn't even walk without help. He spent his days sitting at home, reading books, and boiling soup. He didn't have money, power, or connections.

"It's just a coincidence," Seraphine whispered to herself, trying to calm her racing heart. "It's just a cruel coincidence."

She looked at Lucian, her voice pleading. "Lucian, what about your capital firm? Can you lend us five million dollars to cover the bank loan for now?"

Lucian's eyes darted around nervously. "Uh... my firm's funds are currently locked in a major offshore investment project, Seraphine! I... I can't withdraw cash until next month!"

While they argued in panic, miles away in the quiet, dim office of Brightwick Freight, Caelum Vanterpool sat in his wheelchair behind a clean wooden desk.

Standing before him were two people: Barnaby Quill, and a middle-aged woman wearing thick glasses and a simple wool sweater, holding a stack of dusty accounting files.

Pru Fenwick stared at the calm, handsome man sitting in the wheelchair before her. She had been called to the office at nine o'clock at night, expecting to be handed her firing letter.

Instead, this mysterious stranger had just bought ninety percent of the company and paid off all four million dollars of its debt in cash.

"Mr. Vanterpool," Pru said, her voice shaking slightly as she adjusted her glasses. "Are you really keeping me on as head accountant?"

Caelum looked at her with a soft, genuine smile.

"Not just head accountant, Miss Fenwick," Caelum said smoothly. "You are now the Chief Financial Officer of Brightwick Freight. I read your annex on the four northern shipping routes. Your analysis was brilliant, precise, and completely correct."

Pru's eyes filled with sudden tears. For nine long years, the arrogant directors of Brightwick had called her stupid and told her to shut up. Nobody had ever listened to her.

"Thank you, sir!" Pru wiped her eye quickly. "Thank you! What are your first orders?"

Caelum leaned back in his chair, folding his long fingers together. His gaze was steady, dark, and filled with supreme authority.

"Tomorrow morning, we seize the four northern routes," Caelum said quietly. "We offer fifty percent lower freight rates to every client currently abandoned by V-Core. In thirty days, Brightwick Freight will control the entire regional supply market."

Barnaby and Pru bowed their heads deeply.

"Yes, Lord Caelum!"