"So it has not been easy for the company these past few years," the General Manager began, his voice echoing calmly across the meeting hall. "There were moments we honestly believed News Day Publishing Company would collapse completely."
The room fell silent.
Every employee present knew the truth behind those words.
There was a time salaries were delayed.
Projects failed.
Sponsors withdrew.
The company had practically been surviving on hope alone.
"But," the General Manager continued with a smile, "we kept hoping for a miracle."
He lifted his glass slightly.
"And to the glory of God… that miracle finally came."
Applause erupted lightly around the room.
"So please," he said warmly, "join me in applauding Team C and its leading manager, Mr. Christopher Adams."
The clapping grew louder.
"Mr. Adams, please come up and say a few words on behalf of your team."
Christopher Adams slowly stood from his seat.
The moment he rose, several employees clapped harder out of respect.
He adjusted his suit confidently before walking toward the center podium.
His expression remained calm, but inwardly
He was pleased with himself.
Very pleased.
Especially because this moment reminded him how far he had come.
When he first married Natasha, he genuinely believed her father would hand him the position of General Manager immediately.
After all, wasn't that how wealthy families operated?
Power passed through marriage.
Connections opened doors.
But Natasha's father disappointed him.
The old man refused.
And Christopher never forgot that humiliation.
Still, standing here today with everyone applauding him…
He finally felt acknowledged.
What Christopher never truly understood, however, was the complicated reason Natasha's father even bought News Day Publishing Company in the first place.
It was never because of business.
It was because of Natasha.
Months earlier, Natasha had threatened her father with something terrifying.
"If you don't buy that company," she told him coldly, "I'll throw myself in front of a train."
And Natasha's father believed her completely.
Because Natasha was capable of it.
As his only child, he knew exactly how unstable his daughter could become when obsessed with something.
He had spent years covering up her disturbing behavior.
Manipulation.
Emotional outbursts.
Cruelness hidden behind smiles.
He knew his daughter far better than anyone else.
So in the end
He bought the company.
Even when it required stepping on people to make it happen.
Even when it meant using dirty methods behind closed doors.
But the real shock came afterward.
When Natasha casually revealed the true reason she wanted ownership of News Day Publishing Company.
She wanted to become Dinah Wellington's boss.
That was all.
At that moment, her father finally realized something horrifying.
Natasha was no longer simply difficult.
She had crossed into something darker.
Obsessive.
Dangerous.
A beautiful psychopath hiding behind elegance and charm.
To outsiders, Natasha looked perfect.
Polite.
Refined.
Well-mannered.
Even Dinah herself once considered Natasha a close friend.
But only her father truly knew the kind of person his daughter was underneath the mask.
And that truth terrified him.
Then came Christopher.
Natasha demanded that her husband be appointed General Manager immediately.
That request, her father rejected without hesitation.
Christopher lacked leadership experience.
Worse
The old man understood Christopher's true intentions clearly.
Christopher did not marry Natasha out of love.
He married her because he needed survival.
Nothing more.
Natasha's father knew the history between Christopher and Dinah very well.
Christopher met Dinah first.
Long before Natasha entered the picture.
And Natasha herself only became interested in Christopher because she couldn't stand seeing Dinah have something she wanted.
The old man still remembered the day Natasha confessed her feelings to Christopher.
Christopher rejected her politely.
Then the very next day
He gathered courage and asked Dinah out instead.
That single event planted a poisonous seed inside Natasha's heart.
One that never disappeared.
When Dinah's family later fell apart financially, Christopher switched sides quickly for survival.
And Natasha welcomed him with open arms.
Her father saw through everything immediately.
That was why he refused making Christopher General Manager directly.
Instead, he placed Christopher under Team C as a leading manager.
If Christopher proved himself useful over time, then perhaps the company could eventually pass into Natasha's hands legally.
But until then
The old man intended to remain in control.
Years in the business underworld taught him one important thing:
Human loyalty changes too quickly.
Especially when money is involved.
And if he was being honest…
Part of him also carried guilt toward Dinah's family.
Before their downfall, he knew Dinah's father personally.
A good man.
An honest man.
One who built wealth the right way.
Unlike many businessmen around him and himself
And indirectly
He played a role in that family's destruction.
Because while Natasha cried endlessly about Dinah, he kept indulging her obsession instead of stopping it.
He still remembered her younger self clearly.
"Why does Dinah have everything while I don't?" little Natasha would cry bitterly. "Her mother loves her so much… she braids her hair herself… she even got the man I wanted…"
Every time Natasha returned from Dinah's house, she looked miserable.
And as a father raising a daughter without a complete family…
He became weak.
Overprotective.
Blind.
Only he knew the full truth about Natasha's mother and why their family eventually broke apart.
That wound quietly twisted Natasha into who she became today.
Back in the present, applause filled the meeting hall once more.
Christopher had already begun speaking at the podium.
"…And none of this success would have been possible without the hard work of Team C," he concluded smoothly.
"Thank you."
The room erupted into clapping again.
Christopher smiled proudly while looking over his team.
For a brief moment, he felt satisfied.
This was how life was supposed to be.
Success.
Recognition.
Status.
Everything he once dreamed about.
Only one thing felt wrong.
The woman sitting beside him was not the woman his soul truly desired.
Almost unconsciously, Christopher's eyes drifted toward Dinah.
She sat quietly across the room, calm and elegant as always.
And suddenly
Regret hit him again.
What would life have been like if he never let her go?
If he had fought harder?
If survival had not made him weak?
Christopher clenched his jaw subtly.
Too late now.
As the applause slowly died down
The meeting hall doors suddenly opened.
Every head turned immediately toward the entrance.
And the moment the newcomer stepped inside
The atmosphere changed completely.