Chapter 163: A nobody remains a nobody

Tom stopped in the middle of the path and stared at Stephen’s message again., as if reading it again would somehow change the words.

’We have a problem with L×L.’ The message was still the same.

His face scrunched up into a deep frown. He could remember everything had been fine last night. He had walked the runway, held the room, and even been introduced to sponsors by James. So what kind of problem could have appeared overnight?

"I should calm down and make proper enquiry first..." Before the shock could turn into full panic, he forced himself to slow down. He still did not know what the problem was. He should find that out first.

He dialed Stephen DeMarco’s number.

Stephen picked almost immediately.

"Tom. You read my message right?"

"What happened?" Tom asked.

"Their legal team mailed me a few minutes ago. They’re reviewing your contract again. For the time being, they don’t want you coming into the company." Stephen explained to him.

Tom’s fingers tightened around the phone. "Reviewing it again? What does that mean?"

"In my experience..." Stephen replied, "that kind of language usually means they are preparing to let the person go. They rarely say it directly at first. They create distance first."

Tom exhaled hard. "What could cause that? Last night went well, I mean, very well." he said, laying emphasis on the last word.

"I don’t know yet. I’ve already reached back out to their legal team, but they’re being vague. No clear reason. No detailed explanation. Just the review and the instruction to stay away for now." Stephen said.

Tom dragged a hand over his face. "Alright. Keep pressing them."

"I will."

The call ended. And Tom immediately dialed James. The line rang. And rang but there was no answer.

Tom clenched his fist around the phone, his jaw tightened, then he turned back toward the house. The morning jog was already finished as far as he was concerned.

~~~~~~~~~

Across the city, James stood in the managing director’s office with his phone still vibrating once more in his palm before going still.

He saw Tom’s name on the screen.

He did not pick up. He could not pick up...

The managing director, Evan Mawson sat behind the desk with his expression already closed off, as if the decision in the room had been made before James walked in.

James cleared his throat. "May I know why the company suddenly wants to drop Tom?"

Evan looked up and shrugged simply. "It is not sudden to the people who made the decision."

"That boy has potential," James said, his voice rising slightly. "Has everyone forgotten what happened on that runway? He stole the room. Sponsors noticed him. The floor responded to him."

Evan shook his head and gestured with one finger to the above as he replied; "This came from above. There is no point challenging it."

James stared at him. "From above?"

"Yes. Did you think I just woke up and decided to play management?" Evan narrowed his eyes on him. James’s shoulder and the sharp accussatory expression dropped.

"That still doesn’t make sense," James said after a split second of silence. "You don’t throw out a model the morning after he proves he can carry attention."

Evan’s voice lowered, sounding slightly persuasive. "They’ll pay him for the work already done and release him."

James shook his head harder. "No. That is not good enough. What changed overnight?"

For a moment, Evan said nothing. Then he glanced toward the closed office door and spoke more carefully.

"It is the guy’s fault."

James frowned. "Tom’s?"

"Yes." Evan’s mouth tightened, he took a beat of silence before he added; "He clearly messed with people in politics. And those people sit inside the same class of customers this company cannot afford to offend."

James’s lips parted as understanding dawned on him.

"Oh." That one word carried the rest of the realization with it.

~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, In Paris...

Adrian sat in his hotel room with one ankle crossed over the other, holding his phone to his ear.

The earlier call had already gone the way he wanted. And this one was to confirm.

"I trust you’ve taken the decision that is best for everyone," Adrian said.

On the other end, Caroline Forbes, CEO of L×L, answered without hesitation. "Of course. I am not going to let one replaceable face damage customer relationships this company spent years building. And I certainly will not risk the cordial ties we have with our sponsors."

Adrian’s mouth curved slightly into a smile of approval and satisfaction.

Caroline continued, still appalled by what she believed she now knew. "I never realized Thomas Harlow was involved in that kind of mess behind closed doors."

She had every reason to sound disgusted. Adrian had not given her a vague warning. He had painted Tom dangerous carefully and thoroughly.

According to the story he fed her, Tom was not just a messy young man with a private life. He was a calculated casanova who targeted married women connected to wealthy, influential men. He got close, created compromising situations, and then used those situations for money and silence. Adrian told her Tom had done the same with his fiancée after a one-night encounter, then kept pressure on her afterward with career threats.

When Caroline asked why such a man had not simply been handed over to the police, Adrian had been ready for that too.

He told her Tom was good at what he did. Too good. He left just enough deniability to survive. He never made the kind of open mistake that produced clean evidence. The women involved were often too afraid for their marriages, reputations, or careers to push a formal case all the way. That, Adrian said, was why people like Tom kept moving from target to target without being dragged into court.

He had even supplied fabricated supporting material strong enough to make the whole picture look ugly and convincing.

Caroline had believed it.

"I will not work with a man like that," she said coldly. "Not under this brand. And if I can help it, he will not find easy footing in this industry again. He can go from house to house and keep getting rejected without ever understanding why." she maintained coldly.

"Thank you, Caroline." Adrian’s voice stayed smooth.

"Don’t thank me, I am protecting my company." she replied.

When the call ended, Adrian set the phone down on the table beside him and sat back against the chair, looking so satisfied.

From Paris, without raising his own hand in public, he had already cut into Tom’s new rise.

"A nobody remains a nobody..." He muttered with a smirk.