THE HIDDEN HEIR'S VENGEANCE

CHAPTER 10 : The Monolith Project Intervention

The executive boardroom on the top floor of Lane Corp felt like an inquisition court.

At the head of the table, Viviane Lane sat with a tense expression. As the young CEO who had inherited her father’s throne, her position was constantly challenged by senior shareholders, and today, her own mother, Carol Lane, was leading the assault.

Carol Lane stood with arrogant poise, pointing at the projected screen that displayed a glaring red status over “Project Monolith.”

“This is humiliating, Viviane!” Carol Lane’s voice shrilled. “Monolith is our flagship project this year, and now Mark reports that the land in Sector 4 cannot be cleared? How exactly are you running this company? You’re far too soft!”

Mark Davies sat in the corner with his head lowered. He dared not look at Carol, knowing that his own financial time bomb would soon explode, but for now he was hiding behind the failure of the land acquisition.

“Mother, the legal team is still trying to negotiate,” Viviane said, attempting to defend herself, her voice tired.

“Negotiation doesn’t make money!” Carol snapped. “Maybe if you weren’t so busy taking care of your useless husband, you could actually focus. Matthew is a parasite, Viviane. When will you wake up? He’s a low-level accountant who doesn’t even understand the difference between assets and liabilities!”

The boardroom doors suddenly flew open. Matthew Thomas walked in. His suit was immaculate, his eyes sharp, though faint traces of red still lingered in the whites of his eyes from yesterday’s incident. He carried a thick black leather folder.

“Sorry I’m late,” Matthew’s baritone voice filled the room, cutting straight through Carol’s tirade.

Carol snorted in disgust. “What are you doing here? This is a board meeting. Accounting staff were not invited.”

“I’m here as the majority shareholder of the entity that just saved this company’s neck,” Matthew replied calmly as he walked to the empty chair beside Viviane. He glanced at his wife and gave her a reassuring nod. Viviane Lane looked back at him, confusion and fragile hope mixing in her eyes.

“What nonsense is this?” Mark hissed, finally speaking. “You have no rights here, Matthew.”

Matthew tossed the folder onto the center of the table. It slid smoothly and stopped directly in front of Carol Lane.

“Open it, Mother-in-law,” Matthew said, emphasizing the word with subtle sarcasm.

Carol yanked the folder open. Her eyes widened as she read the first line of the document.

“Certificate of Ownership… Sector 4?” Carol stammered. She turned sharply toward Mark. “Mark! You said the landowners refused to sell!”

“They refused to sell to Mark,” Matthew interjected casually. “Because his approach was aggressive and full of threats. I met them this morning with data. I knew they needed fast liquidity to cover tax debts, so I bought it under my own name.”

Silence instantly swallowed the room. Every pair of eyes turned toward Matthew. Viviane took the document from her mother’s hands and skimmed it quickly, her business instincts kicking in.

“You… you bought it?” Viviane looked at her husband in disbelief. “Matt, where did you get the money to… and didn’t we already secure the land at yesterday’s auction?”

“Broader development, Sweetheart, and smart investments,” Matthew answered briefly. “But that’s not all. Turn the next page.”

Viviane flipped the page. Her eyes widened. “Steel and silicon futures contracts? Locked at last month’s prices?”

“That’s right,” Matthew said as he stood and walked slowly around the table. “I know Monolith needs those materials. Mark failed to secure them. Market prices jumped forty percent today, but I locked them in for Lane Corp. Long-term savings of about twenty-five million dollars.”

Carol Lane sank back into her chair, deflated. Her argument had completely collapsed. The man she had called a parasite had just done the work of an entire department in less than twenty-four hours.

“What do you want?” Carol asked sharply, her wounded pride evident. “Are you planning to sell this back to us at an inflated price? Extort your own wife?”

“No,” Matthew said. He placed both hands on the table and looked each board member in the eye. “I am transferring the land and these contracts to Lane Corp at no cost whatsoever.”

“No cost?” Mark asked suspiciously. “Impossible,” he sneered.

“There is one condition,” Matthew continued, his gaze locking onto Viviane. “I want a position, not as an accountant, but as Chief Strategy Officer for Project Monolith, and I want Mark Davies removed from this project for incompetence.”

“You can’t fire me!” Mark shouted. “Mrs. Lane!” He turned desperately toward Carol, seeking protection.

Before Carol could speak, Matthew cut in coldly. “Mark just lost twelve million dollars of company funds in stock gambling this morning. The proof is in the final attachment. Please review it.”

Mark’s face drained of color, turning paper white. Carol snatched the folder from her daughter and flipped to the last page. The margin call transaction report was displayed clearly.

“Mark…” Carol’s voice trembled with suppressed fury. “You… you burned your division’s money?”

“That’s… that’s Matthew’s fault! He set me up!” Mark shouted hysterically, pointing.

“Enough!” Viviane slammed her hand on the table. Her voice rang with authority. She was no longer a confused wife but the CEO of the company.

She fixed Mark with an icy stare. “Mark, you are removed from this project, effective immediately, and you will be subject to an internal audit. Leave. Now.”

Mark wanted to argue, but under the lethal stares of both Carol and Viviane, he knew he was finished. He grabbed his jacket and staggered out of the room, shooting Matthew a look filled with hatred.

Viviane then turned to Matthew. Admiration flickered in her eyes, mixed with caution. Her husband had changed. The gentle man she married now felt dangerous.

“The board accepts your terms,” Viviane said formally. “Effective today, you are Chief Strategy Officer for Monolith. However, Matthew, Lane Corp currently has no vacant executive offices on the upper floors.”

Carol Lane smiled thinly, spotting a final chance to belittle him. “That’s right. All offices are occupied, but there is an empty space in Basement Level Two, an old archive storage room. If you’re truly strategic, you should be able to work there, shouldn’t you?”

It was a clear insult, assigning a chief officer to the basement. Yet Matthew only smiled, a smile that made Carol uneasy.

“An archive room?” Matthew nodded. “Perfect.”

***

One Day Later,

Basement Level Two, Lane Corp Building.

The air was damp and smelled of old paper. The fluorescent lights flickered like something out of a horror movie. There were no plush carpets, only cold concrete floors.

Matthew Thomas stood in the center of the room, surrounded by stacks of cardboard boxes reaching nearly to the ceiling. Thick dust coated everything. The HR staff member who escorted him hurried away, unable to stand the atmosphere.

Matthew touched a rusted filing cabinet. A holographic panel appeared across his retina. “System ARC active, scan this room,” he commanded, sweeping his gaze across the space.

[ARC System: Level 2 Active]

[‘Contract Lock’ Feature Scanning Environment…]

Matthew’s eyes glowed faintly. Suddenly, the piles of paper trash around him transformed into shimmering streams of data in his vision.

[Objects Detected: 15,000 Archived Documents]

[Analysis: 423 forgotten dormant land contracts identified, 12 unpaid insurance claims totaling $50 million, and evidence of tax evasion by Board Member Carol Lane in 1999.]

Matthew chuckled softly as he surveyed the room, the sound echoing against the concrete walls. They thought they had thrown him into the trash, never realizing they had just placed a wolf inside a meat locker.

“Thank you, Mother-in-law,” Matthew whispered with a satisfied grin. He pulled out a dusty old chair and sat down, staring at the mountain of documents like a dragon gazing at its hoard. “Let’s start cleaning up.”