60 Days to Get Married

Chapter 8

A few days passed normally, as normally as things could go in my situation. Some suppliers had begun to show their support for my uncle, and their true colors were becoming obvious. My stationery and ink supplier contacted me to say they had to raise prices due to external company measures.

Similarly, one of my investors sent me a copy of a contract wanting to terminate his shares in my company, giving me 30 days to respond, and after that, I only had another 30 days to pay him the cost of his shares. He didn't even want to sell them to someone else; he just wanted the money. Currently, with the company's internal and external contracts, it's valued at at least $11 million. Si-Huan owns 2% of the shares, meaning I would have to give him at least $220,000, which I need to raise within 30 days...

It wouldn't be impossible to raise the money, but with my uncle turning important businesspeople and investors against me, it would be nearly impossible to sell that 2% stake in this city. I couldn't stop messing up my hair as I stared at the numbers on the screen, rereading the contracts and emails I had. Luckily, the news was still private among the investors and hadn't reached my staff.

Suddenly, someone knocked on my office door. A blonde girl with waist-length hair and blue eyes I recognized instantly walked in.

"Mia!" I exclaimed, jumping out of my seat with my arms outstretched.

I immediately hugged her as we both laughed. Kathe stood in the doorway, smirking as she closed it. I pulled away from Mia and held her hands.

"You really came!" I blurted out.

"Of course! You told me it was an emergency. The flight is only two hours, so I came as soon as I could!" Mia said. "And you must be Katherine?"

"Nice to meet you, just call me Kathe," she said, extending her hand.

"Oh, Mia," I said. "We have so much to talk about."

Meanwhile... From Sebastian's point of view.

For some reason, my tie felt tighter than usual. Not only that, but an itchy sensation in my ears was bothering me a lot.

Could someone be talking about me?

I picked up the phone and called Secretary Lee, from one of the companies that had been collaborating with Sofia in recent months. Mr. James Clark was offering good prices and benefits to companies that decided to recoup their investments and join Lucas's company.

"Sir?"

I turned to see Damian, who was standing in front of me.

"What's wrong, Damian?"

"Why did you lie to Miss Sofia about her cousin and Lucas...?"

I remained silent for a moment, my jaw clenched, as those memories flooded my mind.

"For the same reason my mother lied to her and told her she was close to her father," I said dryly.

Damian sighed deeply. Despite being my secretary and best friend for many years, he knows very well that he cannot have all the details, in case he is ever in danger. Damian turned and left the office, while I turned to look out the window at the outskirts of the city. Just ten blocks away, I could see the small building where Sofia ran her company. To destroy what little reputation Lucas has left, I'm capable of anything.

I just hope that girl doesn't get into too much trouble because of that.

The private investigator I hired to follow James Clark had been having a tough time. The last I heard, he had a hidden storage unit near the docks. Unfortunately, he'd been caught snooping around recently and had decided to keep a low profile to save his life. Although I have to admit, the guy works fast.

I grabbed my jacket and left the office.

"Where are you going?" Damian asked.

"To do some field research," I said, taking the elevator to the parking garage.

I drove to the location the private investigator had given me. Apparently, they'd been up to some shady business at night. I parked a couple of blocks away and walked, as stealthily as I could. I finally arrived at an abandoned factory with a fairly high fence. I first looked inside, but there was no one around, no security guards, and no one visibly defending the area.

I used some wooden crates lying on the ground for momentum and jumped over the fence to reach the other side. I went in through an unlocked back door, and all I found inside was a giant, abandoned old factory. It was covered in trash and dust, making me feel like nobody had been here for a long time. I walked all the way around the place and couldn't see anything out of the ordinary.

Before leaving, I saw a reflection of light from a place that seemed impossible. On the ground, near one of the corners of the building, there was an opening in the floor. I put my fingers underneath, and when I lifted them, there was a passageway in the floor; it looked like an underground tunnel for one person. I took out my phone and snapped a couple of pictures of the place and a video of what I could see below. It wasn't just any tunnel; it was a passageway with metal walls. There might be... a bunker. Down here.

A sudden noise snapped me out of it. In the distance, I could hear the metal fence opening and a vehicle entering. Someone was arriving at the factory, and I had to get out of here immediately.

Before I could move, I heard footsteps and quickly went into the passageway below, while adjusting the cover so that it wouldn't be noticeable that someone had been here. I controlled my breathing and heard hurried footsteps coming in—two, four. There were two people upstairs.

"You have it, right?"

I turned on my phone's recorder to document what was happening in case I needed it later.

"Of course I have it. What do you think I am?"

"Good, then we need to hurry and get that money. It's a hundred million dollars, and we can't afford to lose it."

"You don't think she'll do it, do you?"

"Sofia? Of course not. We'll get rid of everyone who subtly supports her. Everyone has to support Lucas's company."

"But why Lucas's? Why not just start a new one?"

"Are you kidding? We need more people on Lucas's side to cover up everything he's done. You think drug dealing and all his nightlife activities are easy to hide?"

"No, and don't you dare mention the incidents involving... people."

My blood boiled as I listened to the two men talk longer and longer. Those incidents involving people—they were disappearances, I was more than convinced. I'd been tracking Lucas for a long time. When I went to Anthony Reign's funeral, I was hoping to run into James Clark, but at least now I have more excuses to get involved with that family.

Does Sofia have any idea about her family's business?