Chapter 10
About thirty minutes later, Briar came downstairs in relaxed clothes with a black backpack slung over one shoulder. She gave Edgar a quick notland sand “Let’s head to the office.”
Hearing that, Edgar perked up right away. He nodded and hurried out the door with her.
Beatrice glared at Briar’s back
like she wanted to tear Briar apart. “Mom, I can’t stand her.”
patient. Once your dad gets her shares, we’ll deal with her.”
Halle gently patted her arm. “Just b
In the car on the way to Jennings Group, Briar gave no reaction to Edgar’s hesitant expression. She simply leaned back against the seat and closed her
eyes.
Edgar was annoyed but didn’t dare say anything.
Up front, the driver–who’d been with the family for ten years–watched the whole thing through the mirror. He couldn’t help but feel shocked. Briar was acting like the one in charge now.
Briar didn’t move a muscle until they reached the company. Then she opened her eyes, looking sharp and wide awake.
The summer sun was blazing. Briar rolled up her sleeves, revealing her smooth arms, then got out of the car with her backpack.
She followed behind Edgar with her hands in her pockets, calm and confident. Honestly, the sharp coldness in her eyes made her look more like the boss checking in than someone being brought along.
Edgar took her straight to the top–floor conference room for the shareholder meeting she had called the day before.
All the shareholders were already there. When they saw Briar walk in so casually and confidently, they all looked at each other, surprised. They stood up and greeted Edgar with polite smiles, but their eyes kept flicking toward Briar.
Her meeting notice had only been a short email. No force, no formality. Most people had assumed she’d show up with a lawyer or at least an assistant. But instead, she came alone.
They chuckled quietly to themselves, thinking she was either full of herself or just plain stupid.
On the other hand, Edgar clearly had the upper hand. He had already promised the shareholders all sorts of benefits, so most of them were leaning his
way.
Even though Edgar wasn’t the most capable leader, he had kept the company running well enough. The shareholders were still getting paid every year.
Sure, the Jennings family had lost some influence in Shoneport, but as long as the money kept coming in, nobody really cared.
And honestly, they didn’t think Briar had what it took to keep the company afloat, let alone improve it.
Briar could read the room perfectly. She knew what they were thinking. People were like that–always focused on their own gain.
But she wasn’t bothered. She knew they’d come around soon enough.
She walked over and shoved Edgar away from the head seat without a word. Then she dropped her backpack on the table and sat down like she owned the place. Her voice was calm and steady. “Let’s get started.”
Edgar was fuming inside, but he managed to hold it in and sat down next to her
Trying to save face, Edgar forced a smile and said, “Briar will be leading today’s meeting. Please cooperate with her.”
Chapter 10
The shareholders traded glances, realizing Briar might have something up her sleeve. But no one spoke first. They all wated to see a
Briar wasn’t the type to waste time. After all, there was no way those potbellied, balding old men were going to say anything useful.
She pulled out her beat–up laptop, hooked it up to the projector, and went straight to business. “You all know why I called this meating, right?
Everyone nodded. One of them said, “Yeah, we’re here to vote on the next company president.”
Briar gave a short nod. “Great. Then let’s vote. I’m voting for myself.”
She didn’t even bother looking up, eyes focused on her screen. The projector flashed a few icons, then played some random video clips. Seeing nothing of real importance, everyone went ahead and cast their votes, just for show.
About 70% of the room voted for Edgar to stay on as president.
The rest sided with Briar, but it wasn’t nearly enough to tip the scales.
Those 30% who supported Briar were mostly old employees loyal to Zeke, her grandfather, but they didn’t hold enough shares to matter.
With the voting done, Edgar had a comfortable lead. According to the rules, he would remain in charge.
He smiled smugly and thanked the shareholders before turning to Briar. He said with a patronizing tone, like he was lecturing a child, “See, Briar? I’ve been running this company for years. I know how things work. Don’t be so stubborn.”
Briar let out a soft laugh but didn’t respond to him directly. Instead, she looked at the shareholders and asked, “We’re done voting, right?”
They nodded, thinking it was over. Then Briar smiled slightly and tapped a key on her laptop. “Cool. Then take a look at this and let me know if you’d still vote the same way.”
The projector flickered and started playing footage–clear, high–res videos with sound.
One by one, clips of the shareholders who had backed Edgar flashed on the screen–footage of them embezzling company money, dodging taxes, or bribing officials. They were just straight–up evidence. The kind that could land them all in jail.
With every new clip, another face turned pale. In ten minutes, half the room was soaked in sweat.
No one knew how Briar got her hands on this stuff. It looked like surveillance footage.
Briar leaned back in her chair, voice calm and almost polite. “Now that you’ve seen this, if we did the vote again, would your answer still be the same?”
She held their secrets in her hands–years of lies, betrayals, and quiet crimes. No one said a word, but they didn’t need to. Every single shareholder who had voted for Edgar quietly switched sides.
Just like that, Briar was officially elected as the new president of Jennings Group.
Edgar slumped back in his chair, stunned into silence. He didn’t even have the strength to speak.
AD
Comment
