Chapter 37
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Eli
I stride into the boardroom, coffee in hand, ready to tackle the final reports from the Artisan Hotel launch.
Instead, I find Xander and Carter hunched over the conference table, their attention fixed on the massive screen.
Mom’s voice carries from the corner, clipped and tense as she speaks into her phone.
“Someone explain this.” I set my coffee down, the sharp tap against glass breaking the heavy silence.
Carter doesn’t even look up. He just slides a newspaper across the polished surface.
ALDERIDGE PLAYBOY COMPROMISES BILLION-DOLLAR PROJECT
My stomach tightens as I scan the front page. Bash, emerging from some upscale bar with the same stunning brunette from the Artisan opening gala. Below it, more photos—the same woman, entering and leaving the permit office where the Imperial Club’s renovation approvals are being processed.
“Dammit, Bash.” My jaw clenches. The implications are clear. Improper influence. Backdoor deals. Another scandal with the Alderidge name splashed across it.
I exhale slowly.
“The permits have been suspended,” Xander announces, his voice tight. “The entire Imperial Club renovation is on hold.”
I press my fingers to my temples. Of course they have. One whiff of impropriety, and the city’s bureaucrats scatter like startled pigeons.
“Has anyone reached Bash?” Mom’s voice carries a tremor I haven’t heard since Dad died.
“Drake’s tracking his phone now,” Carter says, tapping his tablet. “But given the hour he left that bar...”
I check my watch. Nine AM. If Bash followed his usual pattern, he’s probably face-down in his penthouse, blissfully unaware that his world is imploding.
“Let him sleep,” Xander decides, straightening his tie. “We need a strategy before?—”
The boardroom door flies open.
Bash saunters in, looking impossibly fresh in a perfectly tailored suit.
“Before what, big brother?”
His cavalier smile falters as he takes in our expressions.
“What’s with the funeral faces?”
I slide the newspaper toward him.
“Congratulations. You made the front page.”
Bash glances at the headline, then laughs.
“That’s what this is about? Come on, it’s just another gossip piece. They’ll forget it by?—”
“The permits are suspended,” I cut in. “The woman you left the bar with? She works for the building permit office?”
The color drains from his face.
For the first time in years, I see genuine fear flicker behind my little brother’s eyes.
“I didn’t...” He starts, then stops. Swallows hard.
“She works at the permit office? I had no idea.”
And for the first time in his life, my unshakeable little brother looks truly shaken.
The cavalier playboy facade cracks completely, leaving raw panic in its place. Then, just as quickly, his mask slips back on—but I can see the cracks beneath it now. The fear lingering in his eyes.
Another alert flashes across the screen.
It’s breaking news.
“Turn it up,” Xander commands, and IRIS complies immediately.
The newscaster’s voice fills the boardroom:
“In a shocking development, Victor Kincaid has accepted a plea deal, revealing his role in attempting to disrupt the Alderidge-Hathaway merger. Sources close to the investigation confirm that Kincaid was working under the direction of James Wolfe, former CEO of Wolfe Development Group. The FBI has named Wolfe as a person of interest in an ongoing investigation into corporate sabotage and fraud. Authorities are asking anyone with information about Wolfe’s whereabouts to come forward... ”
The room goes silent.
I meet Xander’s gaze across the table, seeing my own realization mirrored there.
Wolfe’s attack on us isn’t isolated—it’s part of something bigger.
“He’s been planning this for years,” Carter says, his voice hollow. “The merger, the Artisan Hotel, and now the Imperial Club...”
“It’s all connected,” I finish, watching Bash sink into a chair, his usual bravado completely shattered. “And we’re running out of time to stop it.”
Mom ends her call, her hands shaking slightly as she sets down her phone.
“James Wolfe won’t stop until he’s destroyed everything your father built.”
She looks at each of us in turn. “And he’s willing to sacrifice anyone to do it.”
The weight of her words settles over us like a shadow.
We’ve survived Wolfe’s first two attacks, but this time feels different.
The scandal, the permits, the timing of it all—it’s too precise. Too calculated.
And watching my little brother’s confidence crack for the first time in his life, I realize something that chills me to my core: Wolfe isn’t just trying to destroy our legacy anymore.
He’s found our weak spots. Our pressure points. The exact places where we’re most vulnerable.
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