Chapter 3 · Vote for My Rival? Watch Me Revoke 32 Patents

I put the box in the trunk, slid into the driver's seat, and just sat there, staring ahead, not even turning the key.

My phone buzzed again.

It was Emily calling.

I stared at her name on the screen, letting it ring eight times before it finally stopped.

Three seconds later, a message popped up.

"Alex, don't be childish. Come back and let's talk."

'Childish?' Alex thought.

'So calling me just a guy who fixes walls in front of the whole company—that's what she calls being childish?' Alex thought.

I didn't reply.

I started the car and merged into the traffic.

Ten minutes into the drive, my phone rang again. This time, it was Richard.

I picked up.

"Alex," Richard said, his voice as steady as ever. "I know today's been rough for you."

"Uncle Richard," I said, "did you know about this beforehand?"

There was a brief pause on the other end.

"Emily didn't discuss it with me," he replied.

"But you didn't vote for me either," I said.

"I'm the chairman. I don't vote in these elections. You know the rules," he replied.

"But you could've stepped in," I said.

There was silence again.

"Alex, take a breath. Come in tomorrow and let's talk face to face," Richard said.

"Don't bother," I said coldly. "Uncle Richard, the patent termination letter will hit your legal department's inbox tonight—every single one of the 32 patents. Not a single one stays with StellarTech."

On the other end, Richard's breath caught.

"What did you just say?" he asked.

"I own those patents personally. We signed an exclusive license agreement, not a transfer. I have the right to pull them any time I want," I said.

"Alex," Richard's voice changed. "Think this through. If you do this—"

"I've been thinking about this for five years," I cut him off. "Every line of code, every algorithm, every patent—I pulled all-nighters for this company. And what did StellarTech give me? A CTO title, then they threw me out in front of everyone and made a spectacle of it."

"Emily—"

"Uncle Richard, this has nothing to do with Emily. This is business, nothing personal."

I hung up.

The light turned red, and I stopped.

The brake lights ahead formed a long red line, disappearing into the night.

My phone started buzzing like crazy.

Emily, Michael, HR, and a bunch of old colleagues from the tech team.

I silenced them all.

The light turned green.

I hit the gas.

Chapter 3

I put the box in the trunk, slid into the driver's seat, and just sat there, staring ahead, not even turning the key.

My phone buzzed again.

It was Emily calling.

I stared at her name on the screen, letting it ring eight times before it finally stopped.

Three seconds later, a message popped up.

"Alex, don't be childish. Come back and let's talk."

'Childish?' Alex thought.

'So calling me just a guy who fixes walls in front of the whole company—that's what she calls being childish?' Alex thought.

I didn't reply.

I started the car and merged into the traffic.

Ten minutes into the drive, my phone rang again. This time, it was Richard.

I picked up.

"Alex," Richard said, his voice as steady as ever. "I know today's been rough for you."

"Uncle Richard," I said, "did you know about this beforehand?"

There was a brief pause on the other end.

"Emily didn't discuss it with me," he replied.

"But you didn't vote for me either," I said.

"I'm the chairman. I don't vote in these elections. You know the rules," he replied.

"But you could've stepped in," I said.

There was silence again.

"Alex, take a breath. Come in tomorrow and let's talk face to face," Richard said.

On the other end, Richard's breath caught.

"What did you just say?" he asked.

"I own those patents personally. We signed an exclusive license agreement, not a transfer. I have the right to pull them any time I want," I said.

"Alex," Richard's voice changed. "Think this through. If you do this—"

"Emily—"

"Uncle Richard, this has nothing to do with Emily. This is business, nothing personal."

I hung up.

The light turned red, and I stopped.

The brake lights ahead formed a long red line, disappearing into the night.

My phone started buzzing like crazy.

Emily, Michael, HR, and a bunch of old colleagues from the tech team.

I silenced them all.

The light turned green.

I hit the gas.