Chapter 4 Skeletons in the Boardroom

The soft hum of the air conditioner in the penthouse office wasn't enough to cool the heat building in Nathan Wolfe's collar. A lot was expected of him as the apparent heir. A fact he had expected but still found pressuring. He tugged at his tie slightly, staring at the wall of monitors in front of him. Sicily was always temperamental. The logistics were tight, the distribution even tighter, and now the newest branch manager had come with more questions than answers. Questions he didn't have answers to. Damien had a lot of answers to give.

The video call continued, the faces of various international delegates blinking under the sharp glow of overhead lighting. The meeting Damien had dumped on him that morning. Nathan was beginning to think Damien Thorne was not all he projected himself to be.

"The mineral output in the Valderice area has declined," the Sicily head said, voice clipped. "We need authorization to outsource from Naples or restructure altogether. We need viable solutions now."

Nathan rested his elbows on the desk, fingertips steepled. He couldn't afford to appear unsure. Not now.

"Thank you, Giorgio. Let's table that for now. I want each unit head to submit a report on resource redirection strategies and new supplier evaluations within forty-eight hours. We reconvene in three days. No excuses."

Giorgio looked like he wanted to argue, but Nathan's tone brooked no debate. One by one, the delegates signed off. The screen went dark.

Sicily was bleeding Thorne empire dry but it had been Damien's project and he was finding it hard to let it go leaving his "heir apparent" to deal with the fall out. Every

Nathan leaned back and exhaled deeply. His fingers were still drumming on the wood when the door opened.

"Still a workaholic, company killer " Conrad said with a grin as he stepped in.

Nathan rose, crossing the room to clasp his oldest friend in a half hug. "And you're still always late my friend. You were supposed to check in yesterday."

"Got caught up in something." Conrad flopped onto the leather couch. "But I've already started on Phase Two."

Nathan narrowed his eyes. "Then why are you here?"

Conrad's face sobered. "Loraine" he deadpanned.

"She is getting close."

Nathan's jaw clenched. "How close?"

"Too close for comfort, Nathan. She's pulling strings. Talking to the old lawyers, cross-referencing documents from years ago. She's being... well, deliberate. She really doesn't want you in charge of Thorne."

Nathan paced the floor, hands in fists. "Does she have anything?"

"Not yet. But she's good. And if she keeps digging... Well you know what she'll find."

Nathan halted, gaze steely. "I have to put a stop to this, before it goes any further. I can't let her ruin everything."

Conrad arched a brow. "You're going to talk to her?"

"Nathan...you can't..."

Nathan didn't reply. He was already grabbing his blazer.

Loraine's office was a study in elegance. Gold-accented bookshelves. White marble floors. An abstract painting of a lion on the wall-bold, dominant, calculated.

She was on the phone, voice low and syrupy.

"Yes, darling. We'd love to have you for dinner at the mansion this weekend... No, of course not. You're family now."

Nathan entered unannounced, standing tall in front of her desk. She held up a single manicured finger, motioning for silence. That stopped him in his tracks.

"Yes. See you soon. Lola too. Tell her to wear the dress from the spring shoot."

She ended the call and finally looked at him, offering a smile that didn't meet her eyes. "I assume you know how to knock. Those are basic manners."

He crossed his arms. "I assume you know when to stop digging."

Loraine laughed, low and mocking. "Is there something to find, Nathan?"

"You know exactly what I mean."

She rose slowly, walking around her desk like a cat stalking prey. "It's customary for us to vet a potential heir, especially one plucked out of nowhere. I'm simply doing my due diligence."

"You can't exactly expect me to allow a stranger who isn't worthy take the helm."

Nathan's mouth was a hard line. "By combing through sealed files? Talking to old staff? Pulling favors with the internal auditing team?"

She tilted her head. "Oh, so you are worried."

He stepped forward. "You're playing a dangerous game."

Loraine didn't flinch. She circled him now. "Let's see. Youngest partner at Helios Consortium. Successful merger in the Barcelona tech zone. Fluent in three languages. And yet this particular venture," she tapped a file on her desk, "the Oslo biomass project you listed it as complete. But the numbers are fuzzy. A lot of discrepancies . Care to expound?"

Nathan hesitated just a beat. But it was enough.

Loraine's smile widened. "Interesting. You always did think hiding in Damien's shadow would keep me from seeing you."

"You're underestimating me," Nathan said darkly. "Don't make that mistake."

She turned to pour herself tea. "And you're underestimating me, Nathan. I've survived in this family longer than most. A dynasty isn't just something you just stumble upon."

His face twitched. "So Flynn must have sized you perfectly."

Loraine stilled, the name clearly a trigger. "You don't get to use that name."

"Why not?" he snapped. "Everyone knows he was the start of your fall from Damien's good graces."

She set the cup down, the clink loud in the silence. "Maybe. But I've crawled out of worse graves than Flynn Derren. And now you've shown your hand."

Nathan said nothing.

Loraine leaned in. "You came here to shut me up, which means there is something to find. And believe me, I'm going to find it."

Nathan's eyes darkened. "Then I guess we're at war."

He turned and stormed out, heart pounding. In the hallway, Conrad was leaning against the wall.

"Well?"

"What did you gain by talking to her, dear Nathaniel."

Nathan didn't break stride. "Speed up the timeline. She's more dangerous than we thought."

"We have to get this done before she catches up."