Chapter 3 - A Choice
Across the city, Sebastian Hale sat at his desk, reviewing a merger proposal on his tablet. The office was quiet except for the soft hum of the air conditioning and the occasional rustle of papers.
He was halfway through the third page when his door opened.
"Sir."
Sebastian looked up to find his assistant standing in the doorway, slightly breathless, her tablet clutched in one hand. Maya rarely rushed, so that alone made him pay attention.
"What is it?" he asked, setting down his tablet.
"Ms. Voss is back in the country," Maya said. She paused, then added quickly, "She's just called an emergency board meeting at Voss Group."
Sebastian leaned back in his chair. "Iris Harper?"
"Actually, sir..." Maya hesitated. "It's just Voss now. She's divorced. The papers were signed this morning."
Sebastian went very still.
"Divorced," he repeated quietly.
"Yes, sir. Her ex-husband initiated it, from what I understand. It happened very suddenly."
Sebastian's gaze drifted to the corner of his desk, where a silver picture frame sat facing slightly away from him. He hadn't moved it in two years. Hadn't been able to bring himself to put it away completely but couldn't bear to look at it every day either.
The photograph showed a woman with gentle eyes and a soft smile, her hand resting on her rounded belly. Roseline. Seven months pregnant in that picture, glowing with happiness.
She'd died three weeks later. A car accident on a rainy Tuesday afternoon. The doctors had managed to save their daughter, but Roseline...
Sebastian's fingers curled into a fist on the armrest.
"Sir?" Maya's voice pulled him back. "Are you alright?"
He blinked, then nodded. "I'm fine. What else?"
"That's all the information I have at the moment. Should I dig deeper?"
Sebastian was quiet for a long moment, his mind turning over this new information. Iris Voss. He'd loved her once, a long time ago, before duty and family expectations had pulled him in another direction. Before his grandmother's dying wish had led him to Roseline.
He'd built a good life with Rose. Not the passionate, all-consuming love he'd once imagined, but something gentle and steady. And when she'd gotten pregnant, he'd felt something close to complete happiness.
Then she was gone.
And now Iris was back, divorced and free.
The timing felt cruel. Or perhaps... like a second chance.
"Arrange a meeting with Ms. Voss," Sebastian said finally. "As soon as possible."
Maya nodded, making a note. "I'll reach out to her office immediately."
"Thank you, Maya. That's all."
When she left, Sebastian remained seated, his eyes drifting back to the photograph of Roseline. He reached out and gently turned the frame to face him fully.
"I'm sorry," he whispered to the image. "But I think... I think it's time."
Time to stop living in the past, time to stop punishing himself for surviving when she hadn't, time to see if the woman he'd once loved from a distance might finally be within reach.
—
The boardroom of Voss Group was already filled when Iris arrived.
Men and women in expensive suits sat around the long mahogany table, some reviewing documents, others whispering in small clusters.
The former CEO had stepped down with almost no warning. The only heir had been off the radar for years, and no one knew what or who to expect.
Iris paused outside the glass doors, watching them through the frosted panels. She could see their uncertain faces, their nervous gestures.
Good. Let them wonder.
She pushed open the doors and stepped inside.
The room fell silent immediately. Heads turned. Eyes widened.
Some of them looked stunned; others looked uneasy.
Iris didn't acknowledge any of it. She walked calmly to the head of the table, her heels clicking against the polished floor with each step.
She didn't sit down immediately; instead, she stood there, hands resting lightly on the back of the leather chair, and let her gaze sweep across every face in the room.
"Good afternoon," she said in a clear voice. "I'm Iris Voss, and as of today, I'm your new CEO."
A few people shifted uncomfortably. One older gentleman near the middle cleared his throat.
"Ms. Voss, we're honoured to have you back," he said carefully. "Though I think I speak for everyone when I say this is... unexpected."
"I'm sure it is." Iris pulled out her chair but still didn't sit. "But let me be very clear about something from the start. I'm not here to ease into this position. I'm not here to learn the ropes or take suggestions on how things should be run. I'm here to lead, and I expect full cooperation from every person in this room."
The silence that followed was heavy.
Then a man in his early thirties, the COO, if Iris remembered correctly, smiled and nodded. "We welcome you, Ms. Voss. We're ready to work under your leadership."
"Thank you, Mr. Chen." Iris finally sat down, smoothing her skirt. "Now, let's begin. Ace, the quarterly reports, please."
Ace stepped forward and distributed folders around the table. The meeting began in earnest, with department heads presenting updates and projections. Iris listened carefully, asking pointed questions that made it clear she'd already reviewed most of the material.
Thirty minutes in, she set down her pen.
"Mr. Morgan," she said suddenly. "Mr. Pierce."
Both men looked up. Morgan's face was carefully neutral, but Pierce had gone pale.
"Yes, Ms. Voss?" Morgan said smoothly.
"You're both dismissed. Effective immediately."
The room froze.
"I... I'm sorry?" Morgan's composure slipped for a second or two. "I don't understand."
Iris nodded to Ace, who placed two folders directly in front of the men.
"Inside, you'll find documentation of every offshore account, every falsified invoice, every dollar you thought was hidden well enough." Iris leaned back in her chair, looking perfectly calm. "You've been embezzling from this company for the past eighteen months. The evidence is irrefutable."
Morgan's face flushed red. "This is absurd! I've been with this company for fifteen years…"
"And you've been stealing from it for eighteen months," Iris interrupted. "You have two options, gentlemen. You can leave quietly right now, or I can call the authorities and have you arrested for fraud and embezzlement. You have sixty seconds to decide."
"You can't just…" Morgan started.
"Forty-five seconds."
Pierce stood abruptly, his chair scraping loudly against the floor. His hands shook as he gathered his things, his face drained of colour.
Morgan slammed his fist on the table. "This is outrageous! You think you can waltz in here after years of absence and start throwing accusations…"
"Thirty seconds. And it's Ms. Voss to you."
"I demand to speak with your father! This is…"
"Security."
The doors opened immediately, and two men in dark suits stepped inside as if they'd been waiting for the cue all along.
The colour drained from Morgan's face. "Wait… Ms. Voss, please, we can discuss this—"
"There's nothing to discuss. Gentlemen, please escort Mr. Morgan from the building. Mr. Pierce, you may leave on your own."
As security approached, Morgan's bravado finally crumbled. "Please, I have a family… I can pay it back…"
"You should have thought about your family before you decided to steal." Iris opened her own folder and began reviewing a document as if he'd already ceased to exist. "Our legal team will be in contact regarding restitution and potential criminal charges."
Pierce was already at the door, his head down, shoulders slumped in defeat.
Morgan struggled weakly as the security guards took his arms. "You'll regret this! I know people… I have connections…"
"Not anymore," Iris said without looking up. "Goodbye, Mr. Morgan."
They dragged him toward the door, his protests growing more desperate and incoherent until the heavy doors finally closed behind them, cutting off the sound.
The silence in the room was absolute.
Iris set down her document and looked up, meeting each pair of eyes around the table with a steady, unflinching gaze.
"Let me be very clear," she said quietly. "That is what happens when you betray this company. There will be no warnings, no second chances. If you steal from Voss Group, you will lose everything."
She paused, letting that sink in.
"However," she continued, her tone softening slightly, "if you work hard, if you're loyal, if you help me build this company into something greater than it's ever been... You will be rewarded beyond your expectations. I take care of the people who take care of me."
Another pause.
"So I'm giving everyone in this room a choice. If you're not prepared to give me your absolute best, leave now. I won't hold it against you. But if you stay, I expect nothing less than excellence."
No one moved.
Iris smiled then, and it was genuine. "Good. Now, let us discuss the next phase of Voss Group."