Chapter 1 The Meeting

For the fourth time that week, Felix Callahan sat in a meeting room bored to death by everything that was going on around him. Cool air blasted from the air conditioning system. People of all ages sat along the long oak table with laptops, papers, and Styrofoam cups of coffee or porcelain cups of tea in front of them as they tried to come to an agreement on an investment deal.

The office overlooked the busy city street and although they were high up on the topmost floor, Felix could have sworn that if he squinted hard enough, he could just make out cars and people going about their activities. At that moment, he wished that he were just a normal man without the responsibilities of an entire company on his shoulders. One of the major problems of inheriting a successful tech company from his grandfather, Tobias Jackson, was that he was expected to keep the company successful. Under no circumstance would he be allowed to let their monthly profits showcase anything lower than six figures. That would be utterly unacceptable. The second major problem of inheriting a successful tech company from his grandfather was that his own mother, Bethany Hart, completely resented him for it. As her father's only child, she had been expecting to inherit Tech Town when Tobias passed away and had been utterly flabbergasted and infuriated when the company had gone to her son instead. The third major problem of inheriting a successful tech company from his grandfather was that instead of being out in town having the time of his life in some high-end club like every other twenty-four-year-old was probably doing that Friday night, he was stuck in a meeting with foreign investors. He stole a glance at his watch and groaned when he realized that their meeting had run into the next day – it was already a couple of minutes past midnight. It was already in the early hours of Saturday morning. So much for having the time of his life with his age mates. "I'm sorry Mr. Callahan. I didn't realize that you had somewhere important to be." A nasal voice spoke in a tone filled with contempt and malice. Without looking up, Felix knew that it was his stepfather, Luther Hart, that had made the thinly veiled sarcastic comment. For a man nearing fifty, Luther Hart was relatively attractive – a product of multiple diets and plastic surgeries. Standing at five feet eleven inches, he was just an inch shy of being six feet but he looked a bit shorter than that as he had a slight stoop. His whitening hair which had been dyed to its former black color had already begun to recede. Like the other people in the room, he was dressed corporately. An expensive custom-made suit, golden Rolex, and high-tech laptop served as a testament to his wealth. His shifty brown eyes and semi-permanent scowl made him look villainous. His latest round of facial Botox injections had made him incapable of making any sudden facial expressions. It took everything for him not to tell Luther to go and fuck himself. Luther was the only one in the company that could talk to him like that without fear of losing his job and becoming unemployed. When Felix's mother, Bethany, had discovered that her father had decided to not only pass down the company to Felix instead of her but also state in his will that under no circumstances was Bethany to be ever allowed a position in the company, she had been livid and had then retaliated by insisting that her husband have a spot in the company. It had been a serious case that made national headlines even though the matter hadn't made it to court as Bethany had so often threatened that it would. Ever a greedy piece of money-grabbing shit, Luther had been ecstatic to have a position in the company even though he knew nothing about technology and his last job had been as a yoga instructor which was how he and Bethany had met all those years ago. Luther's joy, however, had been dampened once he discovered that he hadn't been made a partner alongside Felix but rather would be working as an employee under Felix. He had retaliated by frequently making snide remarks and challenging Felix's authority at any given opportunity. Technically, the managerial position that Luther held was one that he was grossly underqualified for but he liked to think otherwise, carrying himself with great pomp and grandeur as if he were the owner of Tech Town. Felix pretended to pick out dirt from underneath his nails. "I don't have anywhere else to be Luther. However, if you wish to take a break from this meeting to do something else, like playing games or whatever it is you do in your free time, I'll be more than happy to give you a break." He stated with a smirk as Luther frowned. When Felix had gotten up briefly a couple of minutes ago to pour himself another cup of tea, he had gotten a glimpse of his stepfather's phone. Rose, his personal assistant, a graying woman old enough to be his grandmother had started to protest when he had stood up, but he had assured her that he was perfectly capable of pouring an already-made pot of tea into a cup. Luther had been utterly invested in a game he had been playing and was paying no attention to what was going on around him. "I don't need a break, Mr. Callahan." Luther sneered through clenched teeth. He hated the fact that he had to address his stepson with so much formality. "We can continue with the meeting." "Excellent," Felix said with a small clap. "So if you could stop interrupting and let us get back to our very important meeting, I'm sure everyone here would be very grateful." Luther glared at him with so much hatred in his eyes but made no further comments.