Early morning sunlight filtered through the stained-glass windows of the Gothic mansion, casting dappled shadows on the marble staircase.Sienna, dressed in a sharply tailored white suit overdress, was having a slow breakfast in the dining room, with only a half-slice of whole-wheat bread slathered with avocado left on the bone china plate in front of her.
She was gently fiddling with the strawberries on her plate with a silver dinner fork when Grayson came down the stairs." Did Mr. Cole sleep well last night?" She asked without looking up, a hint of deliberate flatness in her tone.
Grayson tugged at his tie and walked over to the sideboard to pour a cup of black coffee. He'd barely slept last night, and that message from Liam was like a thorn in his side -- the real Grayson Cole might still be alive." Better than expected." He took a sip of his coffee, and his eyes fell on the cell phone Sienna had placed on the edge of the dining room table, the screen displaying the movement of Imperial's stock price this morning, the green curve continuing to fall.
"Lawrence seems to be in a hurry." Grayson put down his coffee cup, "He sold off his outstanding shares overnight last night."
Sienna finally looked up, a cold light flashed in her hazel eyes, "The more anxious he is, the more likely he is to make a mistake." She picked up a napkin and wiped the corners of her mouth, "The board of directors meets in half an hour, Edward should make the motion to freeze my shares as planned."
"What are you going to do?" Grayson pulled back his chair and sat down, the scent of cedar mingled with the bitter scent of coffee between them. He noticed that Sienna was wearing a pair of pearl earrings today, a gift from him at last night's wedding, a realization that inexplicably shook him to his core.
"Me?" Sienna let out a soft chuckle and pushed a file out of her handbag in front of him, "I was going to show you this first."
Grayson picked up the document, and on the front page was a map of the Imperial Group's shareholding structure, the red markings clearly showed that Sienna's shareholding through multiple offshore companies had reached 28%, and with the 32% she was about to unlock, she would have an absolute controlling stake in the company once her birthday came around." When are you ..."
"While you were busy researching my family tree." Sienna interrupted him, a hint of imperceptible smugness in her tone, "Lawrence and Edward thought I was just a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, but didn't realize that I'd long ago quietly bought back the shares they'd transferred out."
Grayson looked at the woman in front of him and suddenly realized that all his previous calculations looked so ridiculous in front of her. He had always thought that he was the hunter, but he didn't know that he had fallen into a trap carefully laid out by his prey from the very beginning." So today's board meeting ..."
"Just the opening act." Sienna stood up and straightened her blazer, "Mr. Cole, remember our agreement, and later at the board meeting, you'll just have to do what I say."
Grayson watched her back as she walked towards the door and suddenly called out to her, "Sienna."
She stopped and looked back, "What?"
"If ... I mean what would you do if, the real Grayson Cole came back?" Grayson looked her dead in the eye, trying to find a hint of panic there.
Sienna is silent for a few seconds, then laughs softly, "Mr. Cole, in business. Whoever can help me take back the Empire Group is my ally. As for whether he's really Grayson Cole, does it matter?" After she finished speaking, she turned around and pulled open the door, the sunlight instantly rushed in, outlining her upright figure.
Grayson sat there, the shareholding structure still in his hands, Sienna's words like a key to a door in his heart that had been closed all along. Maybe he shouldn't have been obsessed with an identity that didn't belong to him in the first place.
Lawrence Monroe was sitting next to Edward Thompson in a dark suit, and when he saw Grayson and Sienna walk in, there was a hint of imperceptible contempt and triumph in his eyes.
"Grayson, you made it." Edward Thompson knocked on the table, his tone carrying the majesty of an elder, "We're discussing the issue of Sienna's shares."
Grayson pulled back his chair and sat Sienna down, standing behind her with his hands in his pants pockets, looking unconcerned." Oh? What's the problem?"
Lawrence cleared his throat and took out a document and pushed it to the center of the table, "Since Sienna has just turned twenty-five and is not yet familiar with the business of the Group, Director Edward and I have proposed that the Board of Directors temporarily hold her shares in escrow until such time as she has sufficient managerial ability."
The conference room resounded with whispers, Sienna picked up the document and quickly skimmed through it, then raised her head with a gentle smile on her face, "Uncle Lawrence, you have taken the trouble. But I seem to remember that it wasn't in my mother's will."
Lawrence's face changed slightly, "Sienna, what do you know about business operations as a little girl? This is all for your own good."
"For my own good?" Sienna put down the file, her tone steeply turning cold, "Or is it to facilitate you to continue to divert the money from the trust fund to fill your deficits?"
"What are you babbling about!" Lawrence stood up violently and pointed at Sienna's nose, "I'm your father's brother, how can you slander me like that!"
"Brother?" Sienna laughed softly and took out a USB flash drive from her handbag and threw it on the table, "Then let's all see how this 'good uncle' of yours has emptied the trust fund left to me by my parents a little bit."
Grayson looked at the calm side of Sienna's face with admiration. She was like a seasoned hunter, leading Lawrence step by step into a trap.
Edward Thompson frowned and picked up the flash drive, "Sienna, what do you mean by empty words?"
"What it means is," Sienna stood up and walked to the big screen in the conference room, "from today onwards, the Empire Group will have a new owner." She plugged in a USB flash drive, and the screen immediately displayed a detailed account of Lawrence's embezzlement over the years, with bank flows and contract attachments attached to each one.
The conference room was in an uproar. Lawrence's face instantly turned pale, he pointed at Sienna, his fingers were trembling: "You ... When did you ..."
"Just when you were busy finding me a ' good husband'." Sienna turned around and swept her gaze over everyone present, "Directors, I know that many of you have received favors from Lawrence and Edward, but I hope you understand that the Empire Group is my mother's life's work, and I won't let it be destroyed in the hands of these assholes like them."
Edward Thompson slammed the table, "Sienna Monroe, don't be too arrogant! Even if Lawrence has problems, you, a yellow-haired girl, will never be able to control the Empire Group!"
"Is that so?" Sienna walked over to Grayson and looked up at him, "Mr. Cole, what do you think?"
Grayson looks down at her and sees trust and anticipation in her eyes. He took a deep breath and stepped forward, bracing his hands on the conference table as he swept his gaze sharply over the directors present, "Gentlemen, my wife is right. Starting today, the Imperial Group will undergo a complete reform. As for Directors Lawrence and Edward," He paused, his tone icy, "I think it's better for you guys to prepare yourselves for the regulator's investigation first."
At that moment, the door to the conference room was suddenly pushed open and several uniformed FBI agents walked in." Which one of you is Mr. Lawrence Monroe and Mr. Edward Thompson? We have received a report that you are suspected of a huge financial fraud, please come with us."
Lawrence and Edward's faces instantly turned deathly gray.Sienna watched their backs being taken away by the agents, and the corner of her mouth hooked up a smile of victory.
The atmosphere in the conference room was a little awkward for a moment.Grayson cleared his throat, "Okay, now let's start discussing the new list of board members ..."
"Wait." Sienna interrupts him and walks over to the big screen and pulls up another document, "Before we discuss the new board members, I feel the need to clarify one thing."
Grayson's heart sank with a sense of foreboding. He looks at Sienna, but she doesn't look at him, instead looking straight at the board members present.
"As you all know, Mr. Grayson Cole took over Empire Group three years ago." Sienna's voice was calm and unruffled, "But few people may know that the real Mr. Grayson Cole, did not actually die in that yacht accident three years ago."
The conference room once again erupted into an even bigger uproar, Grayson felt as if his heart was being clutched tightly by an invisible hand, he looked at Sienna's back, and for the first time, he felt a real panic. What the hell was she up to?
Sienna turned around, her gaze finally fell on Grayson, the eyes were complicated and indistinguishable: "And this Mr. 'Grayson Cole' standing in front of us is actually ..."
Just then, Grayson's cell phone suddenly vibrated. He took out his phone and saw an urgent message from Liam on the screen, "Boss, it's not good! The real Grayson Cole is on his way to the company with a team of lawyers, and he says he wants to take back everything that belongs to him!"
Grayson looked up sharply and met Sienna's smiling eyes. He suddenly realized that he had still underestimated this woman. Not only did she want to take back the Empire Group, she also wanted to take care of him as an impostor as well.
Outside the window, a black Rolls Royce is slowly pulling up in front of the Imperial Group building, and Grayson knows that the real storm is just beginning. And the contract between him and Sienna seems to be on the verge of breaking at this moment.