"Margaret."
The room dropped several degrees, Margaret froze instantly, the color draining completely from her face. Lisa's eyes locked on her like a hawk circling low, she had a playful smirk like she wanted her to feel safe. The false calm evaporated. "I....ma'am?" Margaret blinked rapidly. "You seem... amused," Lisa said, tilting her head. "Was something funny just now?" At this point her heart was racing more than ever, Margaret tried to recover, straightening. "No. I wasn't laughing. I didn't....." Lisa's smile broadened briefly
"Are you calling me a liar" she questioned rather calmly, and it seemed too scary to be ignored. "I just thought.....I mean, you were questioning Theresa, I didn't think I was..." "Involved?" Lisa interrupted gently. Margaret opened her mouth, and closed it again almost immediately. Lisa took two steps forward. "So you weren't by the service gate this morning or was it last night?" "No....uhm.....I.....I mean yes....I passed by it but I didn't see..." She tripped over her words, visibly unraveling. "I didn't let anyone in."
"You didn't," Lisa repeated. "Even though I warned you personally not to speak to him again?"
"I didn't....." Margaret tried, but the panic showed. Lisa folded her arms, voice low. " Why did you go against me" Margaret's mouth opened, her defense faltering. Lisa's eyes sharpened. "How many times, Margaret?" Margaret's voice broke. "He said he missed me..... I thought.....he said this would be the last....i" She bursts out crying, while the others kept silent, some with confusion written on their faces but they dared not to show it. Lisa didn't blink. "You've been letting him in for weeks," she said coolly. "Sleeping with him while pretending to follow my orders." Margaret's fear twisted into anger. "You don't understand. He loves me. If you touch me, he'll come for me!" The other maids gasped softly, retreating further inward. Lisa didn't raise her voice. She smiled instead slow, cold, deliberate.
"Do you truly think so?????" Fear mixed with confusion spread all over Margaret's face. "I don't like women falling prey to men's manipulation, most importantly I do not like stupid women and you've just proven to be one,.....I genuinely hope he comes for you." Then, turning to the guard: "Lock her in the back chamber.....No light.....No visitors."
Margaret's expression cracked. "You're making a mistake he's dangerous! He'll burn this place to the ground!"
Lisa didn't turn around. "Then tell him to bring matches."
The heavy cell door groaned open. Margaret fought, screamed, pleaded but it was over. She was dragged to the back of the basement and locked in, the sound of the bolt slamming echoing like a warning.
Lisa gave the others one last look, her voice calm as ever.
"Loyalty is not a request. It's the rule."
And with that, she left the basement, her heels clicking softly, each step a quiet reminder the power she held. She walked straight out of the mansion, where her bodyguards stood waiting. One of them had already opened the car door in anticipation. Without a word, she stepped inside, and the driver pulled away in silence.
At the office. The air in the building was different on days like this; heavier, tense, like it had been holding its breath since dawn. Everyone knew what day it was, The meeting, The one whispered about in corridors, revised in hushed tones between assistants, and feared by every department head in the upper floors. At exactly 8:42 a.m., the elevator chimed. Silence fell across the executive wing. Lisa stepped out,her heels clicking a measured rhythm against the marble floor. She didn't speak, didn't acknowledge the staff frozen in her path. Her presence alone was enough to scatter the timid and silence the bold. Her assistant, Talia, was already waiting at the door to her office, tablet in hand, face pale.
"Everything's in place, ma'am. The board is waiting in Conference One. The merger delegation arrived twenty minutes early. Coffee, black, no sugar just how you like it."
Lisa gave a single nod and walked past her without slowing.
Her office was pristine, No clutter, No warmth. A pane of glass looked out over the skyline like a queen surveying her dominion. Behind her desk, a wall of dark oak framed a single abstract painting, cold and distant, like the woman who ruled the entire building.She stood by the window, watching the clouds roll in above the city. A storm was coming, fittingly. Across town, a multi-billion-dollar deal hung in the balance. She would make it happen. Or she would make them bleed.A knock, disrupting her thoughts.
She turned slowly. Talia peeked in. "They're ready for you."
Lisa glanced at the clock. 9:00 a.m. sharp. "Let them wait five more minutes," she said, voice smooth and unhurried. "They should understand whose table they're sitting at." Talia without hesitation modded and closed the door. Lisa finally moved to her mirror, adjusted her outfit and smoothed back one dark strand of hair. Her face revealed nothing, No nerves, Not even a sign of hesitation. She had planned every second of this day. She had studied the rival CEO's psychological profile. She knew what drink he preferred before negotiations. How easily he cracked under pressure. She even knew the name of his mistress. There were no accidents with Lisa, Not today, Not ever.
At exactly 9:05 a.m, Lisa walked into the boardroom. Every executive on her side of the table rose to their feet in perfect synchronization. Like soldiers before a general.
But her eyes sharp, calculating were already sweeping across the room, locking onto the face she wasn't expecting.
There he was, seated at the far end of the long wooden and glass table. Not the elderly, gray-haired titan she'd studied for weeks. Not the man whose body language she had dissected in grainy press conference footage.This one was younger, Much younger. Early thirties, maybe. Slim, but composed. A sleek dark suit. Dark eyes, unreadable and mysterious, even his beauty looked so mysterious, the way he sat down was so majestic. A careless confidence to the way he leaned back in his chair, as though none of this mattered to him, though she knew it did. The shock passed through her like a current. But her face remained utterly blank,Not a flicker,Not even a blink.
She moved toward her seat with the same poise as always, her heels slicing through the silence. The room sat back down in waves, following her cue. He rose only after she reached her chair a calculated delay.
"Lisa Richards," she said simply.
The young man smiled faintly. "Michael Bardin . Acting CEO, Velin Group."
"Acting???" She questioned in her mind. So the rumors were true. The old man had stepped down early. And no one had seen it coming. Lisa folded her hands on the table. "You're not who I expected." He simply smiled while signaling to his assistant
The meeting began.
Figures were presented, projections outlined, papers were passed around. But under it all, the real meeting was happening in silence across the table, between two people speaking the same ruthless dialect in different tones. Every offer Lisa made was precise, irrefutable and declined.
Every counter-offer Michael proposed was coy, evasive, and deliberately ambiguous and refused like wise. It was like a power tussle. The tension arose, no one daring to speak anymore. At one point, Lisa leaned forward ever so slightly, the room hanging on her words. "If this is your idea of leverage, Mr. Laird, it's a poor one. Your company's stock is bleeding value by the week." He didn't flinch. "And yet, we're still sitting at the same table. Makes you wonder how much worse yours is bleeding behind the curtain." Talia stiffened beside Lisa, but Lisa didn't break eye contact. "I came here to make a deal," she said calmly. "Not to babysit an inherited ego." He smiled again, slowly. "And I came to build something with steel, not ice." The temperature in the room immediately dropped by ten degrees. They went back and forth for over two hours, the energy never softening, never collapsing . Just two titans circling, refusing to kneel.
By 12:57 p.m, the conference table laid strewn with untouched documents and half-drunk glasses and bottles of still water. Not a single agreement had been reached. And yet, neither party seemed disappointed only measured, waiting. Lisa stood, the room fell silent once more with talia gathering her folder, she stepped toward the door with the same authority she had entered with. Just before exiting, she paused briefly, glancing over her shoulder not at Michael, but towards the table. "Your delegation will receive a revised brief before the week ends," she said coolly. "Respond if you're interested." Her tone held no warmth, no challenge only command. Michael, still seated, adjusted the sleeve of his jacket without looking up. "We'll review it when it arrives," he replied, equally neutral. No smiles, No subtle glances. Just silence. And then the door closed behind her.
Briskly she walked down to her office, with talia trying to keep up behind her opened the door gently walked in took her seat, talia bursted in gently arranging the files she held, what else do I have on my schedule, " uhm... Just the meeting with your parents asides that you're free for the rest of the day" she paused slowly gauging Lisa's expression "are you okay?" Talia was the only one who truly knew and understood lisa they've been friends since like forever on of the reasons she's able to work with lisa, although they're friendship was not always shown outside but they supported each other, she paused once again taking her seat while asking again "Are you fine" lisa raised her head smiling "I am..... do I look distressed?" Talia chuckled silently " you know you can't fool me even with that smile I heard what happened with Margaret this morning and this meeting... not a helping matter plus you have to go see those demons you call family...I personally can't even stand them... I would feel stressed" she spoke gently gauging Lisa's reaction "if you need me to reschedule just say the word" lisa smiled once again although this time it was strange like it was a fake smile " honestly I don't know what I'll do without you...." She took deep breaths amidst her sentences "I have to go.... I'll rather experience all the hardship today than later" talia stood and approached her, pulling her into a hug "you really need to go easy on your self,..... I'll prepare the car once it's time and I'm very sure you'll want me to look into that hot young man at the meeting"she spoke while giggling
"Do you have a crush on him talia?" Lisa asked sacarstically and in a playful tone rarely heard by anyone else " come now you know I have a boyfriend.... although I wouldn't mind leaving him for a better option" she responded sighing dramatically "I actually think he'll be good for you...I mean I've never seen you haggle this long in a meeting and it's not because you know nothing about him I can count how many meetings with people you didn't know a thing about and you always scaled through" she smiled coyly patting lisa by the hands "Talia..."
"What????? I think he matches your energy... Your life is already to boring to not consider being in a relationship" she said so happily like a child that was requesting for a dessert
" You know what????" She questioned her smile more broad than it initially was "what????? I'm tired of your rant I have work to do" she stood from the desk aiming to leave the office "there's a box underneath your desk I made your favorite....and I'll have to set you up with someone" she waltzed out with finality in her tone not waiting for
her response.