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It's taken years of practice to not roll my eyes when the situation calls for it. I know I'm ten minutes early.
"Sorry."
Jonathon leans back in his chair, his lips twisted. "Have you seen the news?"
"No?" I say, warily. "Did something happen?"
He picks up a remote and unmutes the screen on the wall beside the door. I turn to look at the television and see a reporter talking about canned food that had been served at schools and was way past the expiration date. I close my eyes, already knowing where this is going.
"Why are we sending rotten food to schools?" Jonathon throws the remote at my face, and I flinch when it hits me on the forehead.
However, I keep my voice demure. "It's the new quality control measures in the factories. I mentioned it in the report––"
"There is no mention of anything––"
"It's on page five, sir. Norman made some changes, and I outlined the possible issues that could occur––"
He's already flipping through the report, and his eyes run over the paper. His jaw hardens, and before I can blink, he tosses the report at me, barking, "Why didn't you tell me this in person?"
I stare at the papers scattered at my feet. I feel numb to this humiliation. I did tell him, and he knows it. But if I remind him, the consequences will be worse for me.
"I'm sorry," I murmur, demurely. "I should have informed you."
He looks away from me, and I let out a shaky breath.
The silence that follows is nerve-wracking, and then he suddenly speaks. "This cannot go on like this. Our shares are plummeting. We're losing confidence in our customers. If this goes on, Norman will never be able to ascend to the Alpha position."
My head shoots up at those words, shock filling me.
I've heard Norman mention a couple of times that he will become the next alpha, but I always chalked it up to arrogance and delusion. The Alpha position has always rightfully belonged to Jonathon's oldest son, Adam Moore. While I grew up in the same house as both of Jonathon's sons, I barely ran into Adam. He was always busy with his Alpha classes, and when he wasn't, he tended to stay away from the house, preferring to live at his aunt's. I know for a fact that when he was fifteen or sixteen, therewas a huge fight, and Adam ended up leaving the family home for good. I've not seen him since.
However, he was still the Alpha heir. Nobody has ever stated differently, especially when he set up his own company in direct competition with his father's. Maril Food Ltd. has been vastly successful, and ever since Norman took over the reins of our company, Adam's company has grown leaps and bounds.
This is the first time I've heard of Jonathon's intention to replace Adam with Norman.
Before I can stop myself, I find myself asking, "Will the pack be okay with that?"
Instead of getting angry, Jonathon shoots me an arrogant look. "With changing the Alpha heir? As long as Norman can prove himself, they should have no problem. But we need to acquire Maril Food Inc. if we want to be successful. Adam has been building power in the pack for years. Once his company is under mine, he will lose that power."
I blink.
Does he really expect his oldest son to hand over his company so easily?
"You're intending to acquire the competition?"
"Yes. In fact, I expect you to go for the acquisition meetings, along with Norman." He looks at me.
I simply nod, but his eyes narrow and he leans forward, steepling his fingers together. "I'll make a deal with you, Cynthia. I'm well aware that you would like nothing more than your freedom. If you put in all your effort to help us acquire Adam's company, I'llgive it a thought. And if you successfully help me put Norman on the Alpha seat, I will free you from your blood debt."
My heart is pounding in my ears as I stare at him.
This is the first time he's made an offer like this! Free me from the blood debt?
I will set everything on fire on his orders if I can just be a free woman!
However, after living with these people for so many years, I know not to trust them.
"How do I know you're not going to back off at the last minute?"
