Adrian's Pov
He watched Isla go, still feeling shocked at the information that had just been unraveled. He couldn't find it in him to be surprised all that much, the only reason he had gotten with her in the first place was because of how Intelligent she was, he just never thought he'd see the day when it was weaponized against him.
He had a bunch of meetings scheduled for that day but he couldn't find it in him to care, most of the meetings would be the investors bitching and panicking about the fluctuation, if he was going to fix what had happened he needed space and time before Isla struck again.
He rang for his assistant to come in, he was glad Isla had at least trained the secretary before she decided to carry out all she currently was.
"Yes sir," The girl said, he couldn't believe he had forgotten her name already, she had been working here for over a year, but since he mostly worked directly with Isla, he had never felt the need to pay attention to her.
She stared at him, with obvious fear in her eyes as she waited for him to make his requests.
"Can I see my schedule for the day?" he asked, unable to keep the snap out of his voice. She flinched before she nodded and scurried away.
He sighed and waited, he was in such a shitty mood that it seemed he had no Idea how to do this. He had been the one running this damn company for so long, but because of how efficient Isla was, he delegated a lot and hadn't formed a close bond with his investors and partners, letting her do all the work, it had backfired on him so badly.
She rushed back in and began to read before he held up a hand to silence her,
"What is your name?" he asked, and she stared at him for a moment, as if her brain wasn't moving as fast as his mouth before she cleared her throat and whispered.
"Helen, Sir." She said and he nodded, could she have known about all Isla was doing?
"Helen, have you heard of Mira Holdings?" he asked, and she visibly swallowed, something akin to confusion entering her features.
"I've heard of it sir, just today though," She added, her voice still mostly a stammer.
"Hm, and nothing before? You have no information about this company?" he asked and she shook her head, her eyes going wide as she regarded him with surprise mixed with a hint of fear.
"No-nothing at all," She said and he stared at her for far longer, trying to dissect her and see if he could believe her or not. Would she be working with Isla all this under his nose? Isla was too smart to involve someone who could incriminate her, so who the hell was behind her?
It had to be someone, someone powerful and I needed to find that person immediately.
"Cancel the rest of my schedule today," he said as he stood up, he had no idea how he was going to find this person, but he was sure he'd find a way, he hadn't become the youngest CEO to achieve this much by chance, he was intelligent, resourceful, and he could do this.
"Um….I can't do that, Sir," Helen said, her voice small and timid but firm. He turned back and regarded her, confused, he had given an instruction not asked.
"When did I say there was a choice attached?" he snapped at her, instead of flinching she stood her ground, still staring at him, her Jaw set.
"I still can't sir, you have a very important meeting with all your investors today. They are not happy and really need appeasing, they have threatened to pull out if they don't get your time today." Helen said and that was more than enough to stop him in his tracks.
Shit.
Investors.
What was he going to do about them? He had completely forgotten the number of calls he had woken up to this morning, demanding a meeting with him which had made him ultimately decide to have a big meeting and address in front of everyone instead.
"Yes, are they already here?" He asked, his chest beating, he had not yet even prepared what he planned to say.
"Not here, but in the next thirty minutes they'll all begin to arrive," Helen said and he nodded, he could work with thirty minutes. There was nothing to worry about.
************
It turned out he could not work for thirty minutes. He stood in front of the boardroom, the watchful eyes of all executives following his every move as he tried not to stutter.
"What do you plan on doing about what has happened? Some company just showed up out of nowhere and took a deal we have been working towards for months!" One of the executives said, and the others nodded in agreement.
He fought the urge to loosen his tie, the room felt too hot, and he felt like he would burn up anytime soon.
"Gentlemen," he started, his voice coming out a little bit shakier than he would have liked but manageable, "This was just a little fluck, we have achieved a lot as a company, Mira holdings has a lot catching up to do. The shares that went down were just a little fluctuation and as for the lost deal, I am working on closing a better one," He reassured but it didn't seem to have the effects he expected.
Someone cleared their throat and spoke, "With all due respect sir, this is the third fluctuation this month, things are not looking very good for this company right now, Mira Holdings seems to have become a bit of a problem." The person concluded and everyone around agreed.
"Like I said previously, this was just a flunk, I'm working towards it, and the team also works tirelessly to ensure this is the last one. I also stated I had a deal in motion that is much better than the one we just lost, I think everything is going to be perfectly fine." He said and everyone reluctantly agreed.
He closed the meeting with more promises, and by the time each board member had made their way out of the room, he was exhausted.
He made his way back to his office, shutting the door in Helen's face when she tried to follow with more paperwork. He poured himself a drink as he allowed himself to slip into his chair he sipped and thought.
He had managed to convince the board members today, but what happened the next time? He didn't want to admit it to himself but his company seemed to be in serious trouble. His finances seemed to have been messed with, and with the scandal that hit the news which caused a general boycott from the public, leading to everything else that followed. Only one person had their handwriting all over it, Isla. The wife he had neglected and underestimated.
"Alright, I'll play your little game, Isla," He said as he gulped down the drink.