Before You Were Mine

Chapter 2 : Control

New York was already running by the time the light hit it. The sun came up behind the skyline and caught the glass hard, and for a few minutes everything looked sharp and intentional. From Sebastián's office, you could see the whole grid of the city. Traffic was already weaving through the streets, people moving fast fifteen-something floors below. He liked it from up here. Distance suited him.

It was an exquisite corner office, windows on both sides, a massive cityscape in every direction. Dark walnut L-shaped desk, matte black decor and stone surfaces. Nothing sitting out that didn't need to be there. The space had been put together the way he made decisions clean, no waste, nothing left to chance or assumption.

He was tall and lean, the kind of build that comes from actual life discipline and good genes, not just a consistent diet and gym membership. Dark brown, almost black hair, just messy enough to soften the severity of him. His skin had that natural bronze tone that pointed to his family's past, but his posture didn't point anywhere except forward.

He had a tablet in his hand, scrolling through numbers, deleting the ones that didn't hold up. Standing near the east-facing window, his assistant's voice came over the intercom.

"Your 8:30 is here."

"Send them in."

The guy who walked in was already nervous. It was obvious in how deliberate his footsteps were, and his posture, which was too straight and rigid, like he was trying way too hard. Sebastián let the silence run a few seconds longer than it needed to before he set the tablet down and turned around.

"Mr. Vale, I appreciate you taking the time to meet with me."

Sebastián motioned toward the chair.

The meeting was short and not particularly kind. The man laid out his numbers, softened his risks, and made it all sound reasonable. Sebastián let him talk. He didn't cut in or push back... just let him build up enough confidence to get comfortable. Then he began taking it apart. He found the gaps and broke up the entire presentation until the whole thing started to buckle. By the time the guy stumbled on his own pitch, he'd already lost the room.

Sebastián stepped closer to the desk, one hand resting on the surface.

"You're asking for leverage you haven't earned."

The man swallowed and stuttered. "With the right adjustments—"

"There isn't a version of this where you come out ahead."

The conversation never became loud. It wasn't needed but the tones were firm, stern and no games were played. The meeting wrapped up a few minutes later, and before the door was fully closed, Sebastián had already pulled up the next file. Rizen Pharmaceuticals. The numbers were aggressive: quiet acquisitions, long-term plays, and the kind of movement that doesn't make noise until it's too late to respond. He recognized someone was building something and being careful about it.

His assistant knocked as she came in. "OHC Acquisitions were confirmed for this afternoon at two o'clock."

He knew that name. They'd been moving through the same territory for months, focusing on the same targets, the same positioning, but never quite crossing paths. Until now.

"Is the conference room ready?"

"Of course, sir."

"Legal?"

"Working through it now."

He nodded. The door closed, and he turned back to the window. The city was fully up now, light bouncing hard off the glass, the early-morning stillness long gone. When his phone buzzed on the desk, he didn't bother checking the screen.

"Yes."

His father's voice came through in that same measured tone Sebastián had been listening to his whole life and had, somewhere along the way, started using himself.

"Have you seen the Rizen file?"

"Looking at it now."

"That company didn't surface on its own. Someone's positioning them."

Who was doing it, though? Sebastián thought as his grip on the phone tightened, just slightly.

"I'll find out."

"See that you do. Keep me updated."

That was it. No sign-off or closing greeting, just silence and a click signaling the call was over. Sebastián set the phone down and went back to the tablet. Rizen and OHC were either two separate things moving in the same direction, or one thing that hadn't shown its face yet. Either way, something had been set in motion and somebody had a reason for it. He'd find the thread. He always did.

But underneath all of it, underneath the data, the deal, and his father's voice, something sat in him that he couldn't name or place. It wasn't about the numbers. He kept his face still and pushed his focus tighter. Whatever didn't have a use didn't get space.