Chapter 6 - The Saboteur
Their lips were inches apart when a sharp, frantic knocking on the library door shattered the moment.
Jin rushed into the room, holding a secure tablet, his face pale. "Mr. Kang! Forgive the intrusion, sir, but we have a major emergency."
Adrian pulled back instantly, his corporate mask slamming back into place, though his chest was heaving slightly. "What happened, Jin?"
"Arthur just leaked a story to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution," Jin said, handing over the tablet. "He claims that Miss Morgan was hired by you as a fraudulent fiancée to manipulate the board before the trust deadline. The article includes photos of Miss Morgan's family financial records, her brother's medical debt, and..." Jin hesitated, looking at Tessa with pity. "...and an altered police statement claiming Miss Morgan intentionally caused the car accident to extort money from you."
Tessa gasped, clutching her hands to her chest. "Intentionally?! He's calling me a blackmailer?!"
"The board of directors has just called an emergency hearing for tomorrow morning at nine," Jin added grimly. "Arthur has motioned to freeze your executive voting rights immediately pending a full character audit."
Adrian’s face went deadly pale. He stood up from the piano, his eyes blazing with fury. "He used my sister's memory to track down the private investigator who handled the crash. He bought off the local precinct captain."
"Adrian, what does this mean?" Tessa stood up, her voice trembling. "If the board believes him—"
"If the board believes him, I lose the company," Adrian said flatly. "And my uncle will dismantle everything my father and I spent twenty years building."
Tessa looked at the tablet. Seeing her family's private pain displayed on a news screen for the world to laugh at made something inside her break. But seeing the despair in Adrian's eyes made something else ignite inside her.
Rage.
"No," Tessa said, her voice growing firm, loud, and resolute.
Adrian looked at her, surprised. "Tessa?"
"He thinks I’m a helpless little girl from the wrong side of town who ran into your car," Tessa said, stepping toward Adrian, grabbing his lapels, forcing him to look her in the eye. "He thinks he can use my debt to destroy you. But he made one giant mistake."
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"What mistake?"
"He underestimated me," Tessa said, a fierce, brilliant fire dancing in her eyes. "You hired me to act like your fiancée, Adrian. Tomorrow morning at that board meeting, I'm not acting. We are going to war."
