Free Web NovelChapter 216: Chapter 216 True Heiress
Sylvia’s POV
I locked myself in the executive washroom of Frostline Enterprises, gripping the edge of the marble sink as I tried to steady my breathing. The emergency board meeting would begin in fifteen minutes, and I needed every second to compose myself.
"Get it together, Sylvia," I whispered to my reflection, noting the faint shadows under my eyes and the tight set of my jaw. Charna paced restlessly beneath my skin, agitated and confused by the events of the last twenty-four hours.
Mate hurt us, she whined. Why would mate hurt us?
I had no answer for her. The memory of Caesar’s cold eyes as he announced the termination of our contracts still burned like acid. His words had been clinical, detached—as if the past months together had meant nothing.
A soft knock on the door pulled me from my thoughts.
"Sylvia?" Morgana’s concerned voice came through. "The board members are arriving early. You okay in there?"
I straightened my charcoal pencil skirt and adjusted my cream silk blouse. freeweɓnovel.cѳm
"I’ll be right out," I called, injecting confidence into my voice that I didn’t feel.
When I stepped into the corridor, Morgana’s eyes widened slightly. "Damn, girl. Going for the ’don’t fuck with me’ look today?"
I gave her a tight smile. "Exactly. These vultures smell blood in the water. I can’t show weakness."
"Any word from Caesar?" she asked carefully as we walked toward the boardroom.
My chest tightened at the mention of his name. "Radio silence. Whatever game he’s playing, he’s committed to it."
Morgana’s expression flickered with something I couldn’t quite read before she nodded. "You’ve got this, Sivi."
The boardroom fell silent as I entered, twelve pairs of eyes following my every move. I recognized the expressions immediately: panic, accusation, calculation. These people weren’t just concerned about the company; they were looking to assign blame—preferably to me.
"Good morning," I said crisply, taking my place at the head of the table. "I appreciate everyone coming on such short notice."
Richard Keller, our CFO, didn’t waste time on pleasantries. "Sylvia, we’ve lost three major contracts in less than twelve hours. Vertex has pulled out completely. Our stock has dropped eighteen percent since the market opened. What the hell is going on?"
I maintained my composure as I opened my portfolio. "What’s going on, Richard, is that we’re experiencing a temporary setback. Not a catastrophe."
"Temporary?" Patricia Winters, a major shareholder with ties to the Silver Ridge Pack, scoffed. "Vertex represented thirty percent of our annual revenue. Their CEO—your mate—just cut us off without warning!"
I felt every eye in the room laser-focused on me at the mention of Caesar. They were waiting for me to crumble, to confirm that this was a lovers’ quarrel gone nuclear.
"If I may," I began, my voice cool and measured, "I’d like to remind everyone that Frostline existed and thrived long before our partnership with Vertex. While the termination of these contracts was... unexpected, we are far from helpless."
I gestured to my assistant, who began distributing folders to each board member.
"Inside you’ll find our emergency restructuring plan. We have sufficient cash reserves to maintain operations at full capacity for six months. Additionally, I’ve identified three potential new partnerships that could replace up to sixty percent of the lost revenue within ninety days."
Richard flipped through the pages, his frown deepening. "These projections seem optimistic."
"They’re realistic," I countered. "The Robinson Group has already expressed interest in our new encryption software—the same product line Vertex was funding."
"And what about our workforce?" Patricia pressed. "Should they be updating their resumes?"
My jaw tightened. "There will be no layoffs. Not a single one. I’ve already restructured our operational budget to ensure that."
"At what cost?" Another board member chimed in.
"At the cost of executive bonuses and the renovation budget," I replied, allowing a hint of steel to enter my tone. "Any other questions about my priorities?" fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
For the next two hours, I fielded questions, addressed concerns, and slowly, methodically, rebuilt a sense of stability in the room. By the time we adjourned, even Richard looked marginally less panicked.
As the board members filed out, Morgana gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "That was impressive. Even I almost believed everything’s going to be okay."
I waited until the last person left before allowing my shoulders to sag slightly. "It has to be. I have three hundred employees counting on me."
"And what about you?" she asked softly. "Who’s taking care of Sylvia while she’s taking care of everyone else?"
I brushed off her concern. "I’m fine."
"Bullshit," she replied bluntly. "You haven’t slept, you’ve barely eaten, and your mate just publicly humiliated you by terminating contracts that you personally negotiated. You’re allowed to not be fine, Sivi."
My eyes burned with unshed tears, but I blinked them away. "I can’t afford to fall apart right now, Mor. Not when everyone’s watching to see if I will."
Her expression softened. "At least come stay with me tonight."
I nodded, too exhausted to argue. "I’ll come by later. I need to finish drafting the company-wide announcement first."
After Morgana left, I spent the next several hours meeting with department heads, calming nervous employees, and putting out metaphorical fires. By the time I made it back to my office, darkness had fallen outside my windows, and the building had grown quiet.
I turned to my computer, determined to finish the company announcement before leaving. As I logged in, a notification popped up—a new email from an address I didn’t recognize.
The subject line read simply: "WATCH IMMEDIATELY. ALONE."
My finger hovered over the delete button, suspecting spam or worse. But something made me hesitate. I scanned the message for malware, finding none, then clicked on the attachment—a video file.
The footage was grainy but clear enough. I recognized William Blackwood immediately, Helena’s brother and the Alpha of the Northwestern territories. He sat in what appeared to be a private dining room, speaking with a man I identified as John Sinclair.
"—make no mistake," William was saying, leaning forward intently, "we need to move quickly. First, we destroy Frostline’s stability. When Sylvia Frost is desperate to save her company, we use that leverage against Conrad."
My breath caught in my throat.
"The Wolf King has one weakness," William continued with a cruel smile. "His obsession with the Frost bitch. Once we have her cornered, he’ll do anything to protect her—including surrendering his territories."
John looked uncomfortable. "Is all this really necessary? The marketing contract with Frostline was profitable—"
William’s fist hit the table. "This isn’t about profits! It’s about putting Conrad in his place. First, we collapse Frostline. Then we use Sylvia to bring down the Wolf King himself."
The video ended abruptly. Below it was a single line of text:
"Caesar’s every move has been to shield you. —A friend"
My hands trembled as I rewatched the video three more times. Pieces began falling into place—Caesar’s sudden coldness, the timing of the contract terminations, even his insistence last week that I change all my security protocols.
"He knew," I whispered as realization dawned. "He knew they were coming for us."
I thought back to our last normal evening together, before everything fell apart. Caesar had been unusually quiet, spending hours on his phone, his jaw set in that way it did when he was solving a problem.
"If something ever happens," he’d said cryptically as we lay in bed, "remember that appearances can be deceiving."
At the time, I’d brushed it off as one of his enigmatic statements. Now, it felt like a warning—or a plea for trust.
Charna grew restless, sensing my shifting emotions. Mate protecting us?
I was reaching for my phone to call Caesar when it rang in my hand—Selene.
