Chapter 702: Takedown

The first report reached JD Records shortly after nine in the morning.

Dayo was seated in the main conference room with Felix and three members of the acquisition team, reviewing the final documents for Michael Erickson’s record label. The company had spent years building its reputation, signing artists across several markets and establishing distribution agreements that made its music available almost everywhere. Michael had been its public face, but the financial records showed that Silas Vane had owned a much larger share than most people had ever suspected.

On the screen, the acquisition director had divided the company’s assets into separate categories. Artist contracts occupied one section, publishing rights another, while the distribution network, recording facilities and subsidiary companies filled the remaining pages. Dayo had asked for every category to be reviewed independently before JD Records completed the integration. He wanted to know what he was buying, what liabilities remained, and which contracts could cause problems later.

"The transfer of the principal shares is complete," the director explained, moving to the next page. "The remaining subsidiaries are being processed separately because their ownership structures differ. We have also identified several contracts that need individual legal review before they can be transferred."

Dayo read the summary before responding. "Don’t rush those contracts simply because the main acquisition is complete. If an artist has a legitimate reason to question the transfer, I want the legal team to handle it properly. We didn’t acquire this company to spend the next year fighting people who work for us."

Felix glanced at the next document on his tablet. "The financial side is more complicated. Some of the company’s assets were used as security for loans, and a number of the related companies have outstanding obligations. We can take control of the business without pretending those obligations have disappeared."

"Then separate the obligations from the assets and show me what we can settle immediately," Dayo replied. "I want the people working there to know what happens next, especially the artists whose contracts have been caught in the middle of all this. Nobody should have to guess whether their next project is going to be cancelled because the ownership changed."

The acquisition director made a note and brought up the financial overview. The estimated value of the record label was substantial, but the wider picture was more complicated than the figure used in the public announcement. Michael and Silas had accumulated property, investments and interests in several businesses over the years. When those assets were considered together, their combined holdings had been valued at approximately twenty billion dollars before the investigations and subsequent restrictions began to affect them.

That figure had once represented security for both men. Now, a large part of their financial position had been weakened, and the record label that had helped support their influence was moving into Dayo’s hands.

"How much of the outstanding debt can we settle without disrupting the transition?" Dayo asked.

"That depends on the results of the remaining reviews," the director answered. "Some liabilities are straightforward, but others involve transactions that investigators are still examining. We shouldn’t assume every claim is valid, and we shouldn’t dismiss any of them before the documents have been checked."

"Good. Keep it that way. I want clean records, not a rushed report that looks impressive until somebody starts asking questions." Dayo closed the first folder and moved to the next one. "Send me the revised list when the legal team finishes its review, and make sure the artists receive the same information as the department heads."

The meeting continued through the morning. They discussed staff retention, the transfer of distribution agreements and the management structure that would oversee the newly acquired company. Dayo refused to approve an immediate round of dismissals simply because the previous owners were gone. Some executives would have to be replaced, especially where investigations revealed serious misconduct, but he wanted decisions based on evidence rather than assumptions about everyone who had worked under Michael.

By the time the acquisition team left, JD Records had taken another major step toward absorbing the label. The legal process was not finished, and the financial reviews would continue, but the direction was clear. Michael’s company was no longer operating as an independent power in the industry. Its future would be decided under Dayo’s leadership.

Felix remained behind after the others had gone. He waited until the conference room door closed before placing his tablet on the table.

"There’s another update," he said. "It’s about Silas."

Dayo looked up from the documents. "What happened?"

"Nothing that has been officially reported as a new incident. The people watching the prison have sent information about his current arrangements. He’s receiving legal assistance, and the restrictions on his movements are still in place. However, the conditions inside are considerably more comfortable than an ordinary prisoner would expect."

"How comfortable?"

"He’s in the same VIP facility as Michael. They have access to privileges that most inmates don’t receive, and certain influential prisoners appear willing to protect them. The people overseeing the arrangements have not found evidence that Silas has been granted permission to leave custody or that his sentence has changed."

Dayo returned his attention to the acquisition documents. "Keep the reports coming. If either of them tries to send a message outside or arrange anything against us, I want to know."

Felix studied him for a moment, then put the tablet away. "I’ll make sure the monitoring continues through the proper channels. But I don’t want you assuming that everything happening inside that facility can be controlled from outside it."

"I’m not assuming that," Dayo replied. "I’m making sure I know what’s happening."

Felix accepted the answer, although he did not appear entirely satisfied. He had watched Dayo handle the investigations and confront both men. The evidence had done most of the work, but Felix knew that the kidnapping had changed the way Dayo looked at threats against his family. He could still be patient when dealing with business matters, yet he was far less willing to leave anything to chance.

After Felix left, Dayo spent another hour reviewing the acquisition reports. He approved the next stage of integration, sent instructions to the executive team and asked the legal department to provide a separate update on the remaining financial disputes. By lunchtime, he had dealt with several decisions that would have taken the previous management days to resolve.

He did not celebrate the acquisition. There was too much work left, and the company still carried problems that needed to be addressed. Nevertheless, he understood what the transfer meant. Silas had helped build the business through his money and influence, while Michael had managed it and presented it to the world as his own creation. Now the company was becoming part of JD Records, and neither man could reverse that decision from prison.

For the first time in years, their ability to shape the industry was shrinking while Dayo’s was growing.

The prison had been designed for inmates whose wealth and former positions made ordinary detention arrangements difficult to maintain. Its private rooms were cleaner than those in the general population, meals were better, and certain supervised services were available to prisoners who could pay for them. The facility still operated under prison regulations, but money and influence had made life inside it easier for people like Michael Erickson and Silas Vane.

Michael had been awake for some time when Silas entered the private dining area that morning. A television was mounted on the wall, showing a business news programme with the sound turned low. On the table lay a printed copy of the latest financial report that had been made available through their legal representatives.

Michael pushed the pages toward Silas. "They’ve completed another transfer. The main shares have gone through, and JD is already restructuring the company. They’re moving faster than I expected."

Silas sat down and began reading. He had learned not to react to every report immediately, especially since the earlier incident with the unauthorized visitor. He remained calm around the staff and other inmates, but he paid attention to every change in routine. He wanted to know who was visiting, who had been transferred, and whether any unfamiliar person had shown an interest in either of them.

The report did not give him much reason for optimism. Dayo’s acquisition team had begun separating the assets from the outstanding liabilities, and the company was being reorganized under new management. Silas understood what that meant. Dayo was not simply taking possession of a building or a collection of contracts. He was gaining control of the distribution system, the artist relationships and the business structure that had helped make the label one of the most powerful in the world.

"How much has he taken over so far?" Silas asked.

"Enough that stopping the process would be difficult," Michael answered. "The principal shares are transferred. Some subsidiaries are still being reviewed, but the staff have already received instructions from JD. The people running the company are preparing to report to Dayo’s team."

Silas placed the report on the table. "And you told me that the company could survive the investigation."

"I told you it could survive if the assets remained available and the people in charge kept working. I didn’t say Dayo would be allowed to buy it and turn it into his own company."

"You were the one who managed it," Silas said. "You were the one who knew how much money went into the distribution network and how much it cost to maintain the artists. You knew what we had to build to compete with the other labels. Now he’s taking it over as though all those years were nothing."

Michael looked toward the television. The programme had moved to a segment about the changing music industry, and the presenter was discussing JD Records’ recent expansion. Dayo’s acquisition had become another example of the company’s growing reach. The coverage did not spend much time on the former owners, except to mention that the label had been transferred following the legal and financial problems surrounding Michael and Silas.

"I know what we built," Michael replied. "I also know that arguing about it here won’t bring it back."

Silas had heard enough. He stood and walked to the window, where the prison’s enclosed courtyard could be seen through the reinforced glass. Two inmates were talking near a supervised seating area, while an officer stood several metres away. Everything looked orderly. The men who protected him had made sure that he received the benefits of his position, and he had been told that his circumstances would remain manageable as long as he followed the rules.

Yet none of it could replace what he had lost.

The label had been a major part of his financial empire, but it had also been a source of influence. Artists depended on its contracts, executives answered to its management, and business partners had treated its ownership as evidence that Silas could deliver results. Even when Michael’s name appeared in public, Silas had known how much of the company rested on his own financial backing. The label was one of the clearest records of what he had accomplished.

Now Dayo was acquiring it piece by piece, and the same industry that had once treated Silas as an important figure was discussing the transition as though the change had been inevitable.

"He’s swallowing the whole thing," Silas said. "He isn’t satisfied with taking the shares. He’s putting his people in charge, reviewing the contracts and deciding what happens to the staff. Every part of it is being absorbed into JD."

Michael remained seated. "What do you want me to do about it?"

Silas turned from the window. "Don’t ask me that as though you have nothing to do with it. You were the public face of the company. You signed the contracts and made the decisions. People believed it was yours, and now they’re watching you lose it."

"I lost it when the investigations started. Dayo didn’t need to come here to take anything from me. The company was already exposed, and we both know that."

"Then why does he get to own it?"

Michael did not answer immediately. He knew the question was not really about the acquisition. Silas wanted someone to blame for the fact that he could no longer reach the people who had once answered his calls. The company had given him a way to influence the industry without needing to appear in public, and Dayo’s acquisition had taken that advantage away.

Michael looked back at the report. "Because he had the resources to buy it, and we no longer had the position to stop him."

Silas returned to the table and picked up the pages again. He read through the sections describing the transfer of the main shares and the continued review of the subsidiary companies. Some of the details were still incomplete, but the direction was unmistakable. Dayo was not waiting for them to be released or for the investigations to disappear. He was building a future for the company without either of them.

The realization made Silas angrier than the prison restrictions had. He could tolerate being watched, and he could accept that he no longer controlled his movements. What he could not accept was the thought that Dayo might take everything they had built and use it to strengthen his own position.

"We need to find out how much of the company remains outside the transfer," Silas said. "There may still be interests that haven’t been settled. If any of the subsidiaries are independent, we need to know who controls them and whether they can be used to challenge the acquisition."

Michael considered the suggestion. "We can ask the lawyers to review the public filings and the remaining ownership records. But we cannot give instructions to the company, and we should not pretend that the people who worked for us will take our side simply because we ask."

"Then we find out who will."

"We also need to be careful about what we send outside. Every communication is subject to the restrictions placed on us. If we make a mistake, we could lose the privileges we still have."

Silas had no intention of losing the few advantages that remained. He had already learned that the prison’s comfortable arrangements did not make him untouchable. The unauthorized visitor had proved that someone could reach him despite the security measures, and the delay before help arrived had left him with questions he could not answer. Since then, he had watched every unfamiliar face and avoided discussing sensitive matters where others might overhear.

He returned the report to the table and told Michael to arrange a legal review of the remaining interests. They would not act immediately, but they needed to understand what was still available to them. If the acquisition could not be stopped, they would have to identify whatever leverage remained.

Michael agreed to make the request through his lawyer. Neither man mentioned the people who had helped them obtain their current conditions. Those arrangements were not something they could afford to challenge carelessly, and they had no reason to believe their protectors would risk their own positions simply to restore the two men to power.

Later that afternoon, another report arrived through the permitted legal channel. It contained a summary of the latest public filings and confirmed that JD Records had begun the next stage of the integration. Several departments were preparing to move under the new management structure, while the outstanding liabilities remained under review. No date had been set for the completion of every subsidiary transfer.

Silas read the report twice before handing it to Michael. "He knows exactly what he’s doing. He’s not buying this company because he wants another name on his list. He’s taking control of everything that made it valuable."

Michael looked at the pages, then set them aside. "That is what an acquisition means."

"Don’t lecture me about business. I helped finance this label before you had the position you enjoyed. I know what it cost to build it, and I know what it was worth to us. Dayo is taking that work and turning it into his own power."

There was no answer Michael could give that would make Silas feel better. They had lost the freedom to direct their own affairs, and the company was being transferred to a man who had already defeated them in court and business. Their comfortable rooms, private meals and supervised access to legal advice could not change the fact that the world outside was moving on without them.

Silas returned to his room that evening and asked for the latest permitted news summary. He read the reports about JD Records, the company’s expansion and the transfer of the label. Each article confirmed the same development: Dayo was taking over a business that Silas had helped build, and the process was continuing without him.

He put the papers away before the evening staff arrived. When an officer came to check the room, Silas answered the routine questions and behaved as expected. He had no intention of giving the prison staff a reason to remove his privileges, and he was careful not to let his anger affect his conduct in front of people who might report it.

Once the door closed, he sat at the small desk and began reviewing the names of the people who still owed him favours. Some had already distanced themselves after the investigations. Others had remained quiet, perhaps waiting to see whether the legal situation would improve. Silas did not know which of them could still be trusted, but he was determined to find out.

Dayo had taken the label, weakened his financial position and left him with very little control over what happened next. Silas could not undo the acquisition from prison, but he refused to accept that the loss had to be permanent. If he could find a way to reach the right people, he might still create difficulties for the man who had taken his place.

For now, he would remain calm, watchful and patient. He would not make another careless move simply because he was angry, and he would not allow the people around him to see how much the loss had affected him. But every time he remembered that Dayo was building his own empire with the company Silas had helped create, the anger returned with a force he struggled to contain.

He had lost control of the business, but he had not stopped wanting it back.