Chapter 11

Emily stood in the darkness for a long time. Then she walked into the bedroom, opened the nightstand drawer, and took out the divorce agreement she'd already signed.

In the bottom right corner of the agreement was a dried bloodstain shaped like a fingerprint. It was left there when she signed, the blood seeping from an old wound on her hand.

She slipped the agreement back into her bag.

*****

The shareholders' meeting was held in the conference room on the 42nd floor of the Oliver Group headquarters.

Emily was dressed in simple, neutral-colored clothes, her hair tied back in a low ponytail. When she stepped into the boardroom, it was already filled with people.

Noah sat at the head of the long table, dressed in a sharp suit, with a stack of thick documents spread out in front of him. Next to him were several company executives and the legal team. Amber sat behind him, ready to hand over documents.

Dorothy and Wesley were also there, sitting in the back row of the gallery.

Emily found a seat in the last row. No one greeted her, and no one noticed she had arrived.

The meeting started on time. The initial agenda was routine: performance reports, budget approval, and personnel changes. Emily sat in the back row, listening, with a bottle of mineral water from the conference team placed in front of her.

After the third item on the agenda, the host announced, "Now, let's move on to the special agenda. We'll be discussing the renewal of the investment agreement with Celeste Fund. Please welcome the representative from Celeste Fund to speak."

The side door of the conference room swung open. A man in his thirties strode in, wearing a gray suit and a serious expression. He held a document in one hand and took his place at the speaker's podium.

"Good afternoon, everyone," the man said, his voice steady. "I'm Ryan Gill, the legal representative for Celeste Fund. Today, I'm here on behalf of the real owner of Celeste Fund."

Ryan opened the document. "Five years ago, Celeste Fund invested one billion dollars in the Oliver Group. Under the terms of the agreement, the investor has the right to reassess the partnership at any time.

"After careful evaluation, Celeste Fund has decided to terminate the investment agreement and will withdraw all funds by the end of this month."

The conference room erupted in chaos. Executives whispered among themselves, while the legal team frantically flipped through their documents.

Noah's face darkened. "Mr. Gill, the agreement says 'mutual consultation,' not a one-sided withdrawal."

Ryan replied unhurriedly as he flipped to the right page, "Mr. Oliver, please take a look at Article 17 in the supplementary terms.

"If Party B believes there are major trust issues with Party A's management, Party B has the right to start a unilateral withdrawal process. Both sides agreed to this clause when the contract was signed."

"And what exactly counts as a major trust issue?" Noah's voice was low, every word heavy as lead.

Ryan shot him a glance. "My client believes the current management of the Oliver Group is letting personal feelings cloud their judgment.

"To be specific, several personnel appointments and resource allocations aren't based on ability, but on the managers' private relationships."

The conference room fell silent.

Someone coughed softly.

Noah's hand rested on the table, his knuckles white. "That's not a valid reason," he said.

Ryan replied, snapping the file shut, "This is a right my client has under the agreement. Mr. Oliver, one billion dollars isn't exactly pocket change. I suggest you take this seriously.

"We need all the money out by the end of this month. If you work with us, we can withdraw in stages to ease the pressure on your cash flow. If you don't—"

Ryan paused and added, "Then we'll take it all out in one go."

Noah stood up, both hands braced on the table. "Tell your client I want to meet them in person."

Ryan shook his head. "My client isn't open to a direct meeting right now. All communication goes through me."

Noah shot back, "Why should I accept that? The person who took one billion dollars from us doesn't even have the guts to show their face?"

"Mr. Oliver," Ryan said as he stood and collected his files, "my client has a message for you."

"What is it?" Noah asked.

Ryan said, "That one billion dollars was never yours to begin with."

With that, Ryan gave a nod to the room and walked out through the side door.

The conference room was dead silent.

Dorothy rose to her feet at the back, her face ashen. Bruce gripped the water bottle in front of him so tightly that the plastic started to crumple in his hand.

Noah stood at the head of the table, both hands braced on the surface, his head bowed. His back was taut, like a drawn bowstring.

Amber stood up from her seat and walked over to him, her voice gentle. "Mr. Oliver, would you like to take a break?"

Noah didn't even look at her. "John."

John stepped forward. "Yes."

"Dig up everything you can on Celeste. Turn over every stone, use every contact. Spend whatever it takes. I want to know who's really behind Celeste Fund in three days."

"Yes."

Noah straightened up, his gaze sweeping across the conference room. Everyone lowered their heads.

His gaze settled on the last row.

The seat was empty. Emily had left at some point.

He withdrew his gaze, pulled out his chair, and sat back down. The documents were scattered across the table, with the five-year-old investment agreement open to Article 17.