Chapter 10 He Means So Much To Me

"What was that about?" Noah queried once Orion was back in the conference room. Orion paused in his track, a bit taken aback by the question.

"Yes?" Noah prompted.

"I'm sorry, but I don't see how any of that is your business."

Noah chuckled as he shook his head, running a thumb across his lips. "Now we both know that's a pretty dumb thing to say, Orion. It should be my business, because that lady barged into 'my' conference room, looking for you. That interrupted our meeting, you know."

Orion opened his mouth to say something, but Noah quickly cut him off. "But that's by the way. I'll let it go, just for today. You can head back to your seat."

Orion chuckled sardonically as he walked to his seat, fighting the urge to bite back. Before he took his seat, he curtsied slightly, facing the members of the board. "I'm sorry about the interruption that occurred earlier," he apologized, then took his seat.

"So, as we were saying, before the interruption," Noah began, standing to his feet. "The reason we're here today is to discuss the total amount of shares that will be yielded to Garcia Crown by Starlight, the Blackwoods' newest establishment."

"At this point, I'd like to introduce my lawyer, Seth Antonio, who would break down the entire affiliation process and acquisition of shares to us, and also lay out the terms and conditions of the affiliation."

Seth Antonio, Garcia Crown's legal representative, went to work explaining the terms and conditions of the affiliation to both parties, making sure to state the necessary facts regarding the acquisition of shares. The hall was silent as he explained, everyone paying rapt attention.

"Finally, when it comes to the acquisition of shares, Garcia Crown demands that Starlight yield eighty percent of her shares. Then a deal will be struck between the two sides."

Orion felt his eyes burn with anger at the announcement the legal representative had just made.

Eighty percent?

He jumped to his feet before he could stop himself, to the surprise of everyone at the table.

"That's ridiculous!" he spat.

"Excuse me?" the legal representative queried, visibly embarrassed by the outburst.

"I'm saying, the demand of eighty percent of Starlight's shares, for an affiliation to happen, is outright ridiculous," Orion repeated, a bit calmly this time.

"I-" the legal representative started to say, but Noah cut him off.

"It's alright, attorney. You can have your seat," Noah said, standing up and adjusting his suit jacket.

"Can you tell us why that is ridiculous, Orion?"

"Is this what you had in mind coming here? You and your team?" Orion queried incredulously.

"I still don't understand what you mean, Orion. This is simply a deal that would benefit both sides, which I'm a hundred percent sure, you'll be more on the benefiting side. What's eighty percent to sacrifice for a huge futuristic success?"

Orion scoffed and shook his head. Noah hadn't intended going through with this deal in the first place.

He should have known.

Of course, it was the ever cunning Noah Garcia.

He swallowed, trying not to admit to himself that he'd known that this would turn out this way, but he'd somehow hoped it wouldn't. He'd thought that maybe, just maybe, Noah Garcia was a changed person.

But he was wrong, yet again.

"Orion? We don't have much time to spend here, so let's... "

"You know?" Orion said, scraping his chair backwards. "Forget this. I'm outta here. This was never going to work." He glanced at Rusk as he walked towards the doorway, "let's get out of here."

Rusk started to argue, "but-"

"Now, Rusk. We're leaving."

.

.

Lyra sat at the reception of Peter and her sons, fidgeting and glancing up sporadically at the sound of a door opening or closing. She'd been sitting there for over an hour, trying to get her thoughts together, and silently praying that Rowan Peter had tangible information about her husband's whereabouts. She was tired of meeting a dead end each time, but she needed to find her husband. Her heart ached each time she thought about him, and she was angered by the fact that there was nothing she could do to bring him back.

She couldn't even find him.

He'd run off to someplace she didn't know, leaving her all alone.

She was haunted by a tinge of guilt each time she thought about how she knew so little about her husband. If she truly knew who she'd married, then she should be able to find her.

But she didn't have even the slightest idea.

Maybe that's why he'd cheated on her?

She constantly blamed herself, but it was not enough to rid herself of the guilt that enveloped her.

"Missus Raven?" someone called, tapping her, and Lyra shook visibly, back to reality.

"Are you okay?" the secretary that had tapped her asked, looking down at her with concern.

"Huh?" Lyra replied, still trying to grasp what was going on.

"I've been calling you for a while now, but you seem to have zoned out. Is everything okay?"

"Oh," Lyra said, jolting off the couch. "Yeah, sure," she added, plastering a fake smile on her face.

The receptionist shrugged and smiled sympathetically. "If you say so, The Attorney will see you now," she said, gesturing towards the office that had Esquire Rowan Peters written in bold letters.

"Oh, thank you," Lyra gushed as she hurried towards the office, arranging her skirts as she went.

She knocked twice on the door, and a very polished voice ushered her in.

Rowan Peter stood to welcome her as she stepped into the office. He was a slightly huge man, with a toothy grin and very pleasant facial features. His dark hair was slicked back very professionally, highlighting his flat forehead.

"It's good to see you, Missus Raven. Please, sit," Rowan said, gesturing to the chair facing his desk.

Lyra forced a smile and took the seat, meekly folding her legs underneath the chair.

"So, would you like a drink?"

"No, thank you. I'm good," Lyra declined politely.

Rowan shrugged and took his seat, then picked up his glasses from the table. "So, to what do I owe this pleasant surprise?" Rowan asked, cleaning the lens of the glass.

Lyra seemed quite perturbed by the question, but she quickly masked it before Rowan could notice. She wasn't going to show any signs of weakness to another stranger.

"Uhm, I heard you're my husband's attorney," Lyra started.

Rowan narrowed his eyes on her in confusion.

"Zander Raven," Lyra offered when she saw his confusion.

"Of course, I know who your husband is."

"He served me divorce papers, you see," Lyra continued, biting her lips. "He left me those papers, and he never returned. I was wondering if you knew something about that."

"About what?"

"My husband's disappearance."

Rowan adjusted uncomfortably in his seat. "I'm sorry, Missus Raven. I'm finding it quite difficult to understand what you're saying right now. What do you mean?"

"Attorney, I'm asking if you know anything about my husband's disappearance. You helped him prepare these divorce papers, so I'm assuming you know where he disappeared from."

"I-" Rowan started, but was interrupted by Lyra, who suddenly grabbed his hands on the desk, sitting forward.

"Attorney, please, I need your help. I need to find Zander," she pleaded, her voice breaking. "He means so much to me, you see. I'm not exactly sure why he left me, but I know it might be due to some misunderstanding. I've not been myself this past week because he's not been around. I really need to find him. Please."

Rowan watched helplessly as Lyra desperately held on to the strands of hope she thought she saw. He pitied her, because he knew the disappearance of her husband was a lesser blow to the perfect marriage she thought they had, compared to the news he was about to break to her.

"Please calm down, Missus Raven," Rowan said, trying to pacify her.

"Just help me out here, please."

"Alright. Just listen to me."

Lyra let go of his hand and listened, eager to hear what he had to say.

"About the divorce papers..have you signed them?"

"Not yet, but-"

"You have to sign them, Missus Raven."

"Why? I don't want to divorce Zander," Lyra responded defiantly.

"I'm afraid you're going to have to, because Zander isn't coming back."

"Just tell me where he is, please!"

"Why don't we do it this way, huh? You sign the papers first, then I can tell you something about the whereabouts of your husband."

"I'm not signing the-"

"I'm sorry to say this, but you don't have a choice."

Lyra stared at the attorney in shock, trying to process what he'd just said.

She, Lyra Raven, didn't have a say in her own marriage?

After a while, she sighed and nodded. "Okay, then. If it's what you all want, I'm going to sign the papers. It's Zander, we can always get married again, so I'm not bothered," she said, bringing out the papers from the bag she carried.

"But, you have to promise me you're going to tell me where he is after I sign these, else all hell will break loose here. I can be very destructive."

"Don't worry, I'll tell you," Rowan assured.

"Fingers crossed?"

"Yes, definitely."

Lyra nodded. "Alright then. Can I borrow your pen?"

"Sure. Have you gone through the papers, though?"

"That's not necessary. I don't have to. I'm not divorcing my husband."

"Missus Raven, it's necessary you go through the documents before you sign, especially with your lawyer, who will explain the clauses better to you."

"I told you, all that's not necessary. I'm just signing these so you can tell me about my husband, not because I'm actually going through with the divorce."

Rowan shrugged and handed her a pen, and she quickly scribbled her signature on the paper.

"So, are we good?"

Rowan nodded and took the papers, examining them.

"Alright," Rowan said, clearing his throat. "Missus Raven," he started, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. "I'm not supposed to be disclosing this to you, because of the confidentiality agreement I signed with my client, but I made a promise to you so..." he shrugged again.

"All I can tell you right now, is that my client, Zander Raven, is terminally ill."