Free Web NovelChapter 147: Don’t lie to me
Diego stepped out of his car, his eyes trailing up the glass facade of Falcone Industries. The building felt like a fortress of power that he no longer had a key to. He took the elevator to the executive floor, the silent ascent doing nothing to calm the storm in his stomach.
Stopping right outside the chairman’s office, he took a deep breath, his fingers curling into tight fists of anticipation. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
’I wonder if he’s going to ask me to pay more for the damage from the incident at the company. I’m already broke,’ he thought. Ever since the divorce, the safety net had been pulled out from under him.
He knocked on the heavy oak door and waited.
"Come in," Adam’s voice boomed.
Diego pushed the door open and stepped inside. He saw Adam seated in the familiar leather chair, the light from the floor-to-ceiling windows silhouetting him like an uncompromising judge.
"You called me, D—" Diego stopped. The word ’Dad’ felt like a foreign object in his mouth now that his mother and Adam had finalized their divorce. It didn’t belong to him anymore. He cleared his throat, hardening his expression. "Why did you call me, Chairman Falcone?" ƒгeewebnovёl.com
"Take a seat," Adam stated, not even looking up from the file on his desk.
Confused and feeling the weight of the power imbalance, Diego pulled out the chair gently and lowered himself onto it, his back straight.
"Did you pay every single penny you were supposed to?" Adam asked, his voice as cold and sterile as the office air.
"Not yet. I—I have asked for time to pay for the damages to the company. I still have two months to settle the balance," Diego replied, his voice wavering. He felt like a student being interrogated by a headmaster, despite being a grown man.
"What are you doing with your time these days?" Adam probed further, leaning back in his chair. The movement was slow, deliberate, designed to make Diego feel the weight of his own stagnation.
"Nothing," Diego replied in a low voice, keeping his gaze fixed on the mahogany desk. He couldn’t bring himself to tell Adam that he had recently resigned from the low-level position a friend had helped him secure. He knew the "ban" Adam had placed on him in the industry was still active, and admitting he had tried to circumvent it would only invite more humiliation.
"What are you thinking to do with your life then?" Adam questioned, his tone shifting from cold to dangerously disappointed. "When you and Frida first met me, I truly thought you had the potential to do something big. I saw a spark in you, Diego."
Diego looked up, meeting Adam’s piercing eyes, and gulped hard, his eyes moving rapidly in anxiety.
"I failed you. I am aware of that," Diego whispered, the weight of his defeat finally breaking through. "I’m already struggling with a lot of things. I—I don’t think I am able to answer all of your questions right now. As per the legal contract, I’ll pay the debt, I just—"
"Work as an assistant to me," Adam said, cutting him off with surgical precision.
Diego snapped his head up, his shoulders relaxing so suddenly it was as if a physical burden had been lifted. The sharp, jagged nervousness in his voice died down instantly, replaced by a hollow, ringing silence.
"What?" he exclaimed, his voice cracking in shock.
"Join Falcone Industries as my assistant, Diego," Adam repeated. He reached to his left, grabbed a thick manila folder, and slid it across the polished desk toward him. "I’ve gotten back Falcone Industries thanks to Sara. Read the terms of your contract. This is the one last chance I’m giving you to change your life. Do not make me regret it."
Diego couldn’t believe his ears. The man who had effectively banned him from the industry was now pulling him into it. His lips quivered as a spark of hope ignited in his chest.
"Dad..." he breathed, the word slipping out instinctively this time. "I will not disappoint you this time. I—I promise you." He reached out with trembling hands, clutching the file as if it were a life raft. He flipped it open, his eyes scanning the clauses, though the words blurred. "I will do it. I’ll be your assistant."
He paused, a realization hitting him. "And is it true that Sara got it back from Luca? I mean... are you—" He stopped, his mind racing. He couldn’t wrap his head around how his sister had managed to wrestle a billion-dollar empire away from a man like Luca De Augustino.
"Yes, she did," Adam stated, his voice dropping to a somber tone. "But your contract is only for six months. I will personally oversee your work during this period. If you fail me, Diego, then I will accept that I made a grave mistake in ever believing in you. I truly hope you prove me wrong this time."
Diego didn’t trust himself to speak; he knew words were cheap at this point. He simply nodded, his jaw set with a new-found resolve, and thanked Adam for the opportunity.
"Did Sara ask you to give me a chance?" he asked tentatively, wondering if his stepsister was still pulling strings for him from the shadows.
"No," Adam replied bluntly. "She isn’t interested in your or Frida’s life anymore. She returned Falcone Industries for my sake, and my sake alone. It was my instinct that wanted to give you this opening. You once told me I wasn’t a father who made you feel protected that I always chose Sara over everything."
Adam stood up, walking toward the window to look out at the city he had nearly lost. "Though your mother and I are divorced, and I have no legal claim over you or Frida, I never considered you a ’stepson.’ I truly hoped you would become a real son to me. Your mother never understood me that is why she brought this ruin upon herself. But I won’t complain about her in front of you. Go to the HR department, collect your badge, and join the office tomorrow morning."
Diego stood up from the chair as he wiped the single tear that just had escaped the corner of his eyes. "Yes, Dad. Thank you. Thank you so much. And I’m truly sorry for everything." He couldn’t feel but guilty for not becoming a support to Adam and kept grinding in jealousy towards Sara.
~~~~~
Joseph checked into his suite and slumped into the heavy velvet sofa chair. The flight had only been an hour, but it had exhausted him for some reason.
Reaching into his trousers, he pulled out his phone. His first move was to leave a quick message to his secretary to confirm he had landed safely in Madrid. Then, his fingers hovered over the screen before he pulled up the contact portal he had spent days securing. With a steady breath, he sent a formal request to book an appointment to meet with Sara.
He knew the odds were slim. Sara wasn’t just a corporate executive; she was the secretary to Luca De Augustino. But Joseph had to try.
Lowering the phone, he leaned his head back and gazed out the floor-to-ceiling windows. Madrid was indeed a magical city at night. The evening had already deepened into a rich indigo, and the city lights below sparkled like fallen stars against the Spanish architecture.
Suddenly, his phone rang, and he saw it was a call from his mother. He answered it and heard Paulina’s sharp voice from the other.
"Why have you gone to Madrid?"
Joseph stiffened, his mind racing to maintain his cover. "Who told you I’m in Madrid?" he countered with a feigned confusion before he lied. "I’m in Scotland for the textile merger. I told you that before I left."
"Don’t lie to me, Joseph!" Paulina screamed so loudly that he had to pull the device away from his ear. "I have my ways! I found out you flew to Madrid this afternoon. Are you there to see her? To see Sara? I told you clearly... You do not have a sister! Return to Barcelona immediately if you have any respect or love for me."
"I’m not returning until I meet Sara," Joseph snapped, his patience finally snapping. "And don’t yell at me. Since we’re being honest so let me tell you, I don’t love you, Mother. I let you throw your tantrums and control my life only because I didn’t want you creating more trouble for me than you already have. You’ve been a weight around my neck my entire life. You’ve never performed your duty as a mother. Don’t forget that."
He didn’t wait for her response. He cut the call, his chest heaving as finally spoke his truth.
Almost instantly, the phone began to vibrate again.
Joseph stared at the lit-up screen for a moment, then tossed it onto the sofa and walked into the washroom, slamming the door behind him.
