Chapter 0101
+25 BONUS
After arriving at the Palmer mansion, Leonard went straight to his bedroom and locked himself inside. He had no energy left to keep discussing the matter. He knew full well that Catherine had suffered because of his father’s actions, but he never imagined how drastically things would change now.
Maximus, on the other hand, couldn’t calm down. Feeling angry and betrayed, he decided to go to Alexia’s place. He needed someone to talk to, someone to vent to, because the thoughts swirling in his mind refused to let him rest. The idea that this was all on elaborate plan orchestrated by his grandmother and Peter wouldn’t leave him alone. Deep down, he even suspected Mary might be involved, consciously or not. After all, how else could be explain that she was now a shareholder–and not just any shareholder, but the second largest?
“My love, what’s with that face?” Alexia asked, opening her arms to hug him.
“I haven’t had a good day. There was a shareholders‘ meeting. Grandma gave us quite the surprise.” “What kind of surprise?” Alexia asked, intrigued.
“She congratulated me on the baby and said she’d accept my divorce from Mary. In fact, she’s going to handle it herself, and it should be settled quickly without us having to meet.”
“That’s fantastic! Such great news! So why the long face?”
“She brought up another issue. She’s fractured the company.”
“What?”
“Out of nowhere, she announced that the company isn’t 100% owned by the Palmer family. There are two other families involved in the group.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Grandma introduced us to a new shareholder: Marcus Bartz. It turns out he’s now the majority shareholder with 34%. And Mary Preston–she’ll hold 33%.”
“What the hell are you saying?”
“It’s the same thing that’s been eating at me. The Palmer family is left with just 33%, which Grandma split between the three of us–my father, Peter, and me. We each get 11%.”
“That can’t be true!” Alexia exclaimed in shock.
“I know! Believe me, I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. My father says he’ll talk to Grandma when things have calmed down. The situation spiraled out of control this morning. And this Marcus Bartz… he’s left me with so many questions.”
“That’s not fair! You’ve dedicated your life to the group. You deserve the majority!”
“Not anymore. And starting tomorrow, I won’t even be the president of the group. That position will go to Peter since Marcus Bartz isn’t in the country. Grandma named Marcus as the next president, but he refused. Instead, he’s leaving power of attorney to Peter to manage his stake. He proposed Peter, but ultimately left things unresolved. You know how my brother is.”
1/2
Chapter 010T
“This can’t be happening! How can they take everything from you overnight? You can’t just let this go!”
“I know! Belleve me, I know!”
That night, while Maximus slept, Alexia couldn’t. She lay awake, her mind racing. Picking up her phone, she dialed a number. Now that she was pregnant with Maximus’s firstborn and soon to be his wife, she couldn’t afford to be left with nothing. An 11% stake in the company was far from enough.
“Grandpa? I’ve never asked you for anything, but I need your help now. It’s imperative, especially if you want to take part in the Palmer group.”
Whatever the man on the other end said made Alexia smile coldly.
“Alright. I’ll see you tomorrow at that place and time.
Unknowingly, by confiding in Alexia about what had happened at the meeting, Maximus was sealing the
fate of the Palmer family–and the other two families. What came next would set everything on an irreversible path starting tomorrow.
