Chapter 697
Chapter 697: Chapter 697
I fished the keycard out of my pocket and tapped it against the reader. The door buzzed softly and unlocked. I stepped inside and closed the door behind me with a deep sigh. It was eleven in the morning, and Minne didn’t seem to be home. I remembered her saying she was going to visit her mother today.
I stretched my arms and slipped the keycard back into my pocket, then walked toward the kitchen. When I opened the fridge, I found a cold sandwich waiting for me, Minne had prepared it, knowing I’d skipped breakfast.
"That’s my girl."
I grabbed the sandwich and took a big bite as I headed into the living room. I turned on the TV, but the forecast was depressing. It looked like snow was coming tonight and possibly tomorrow too. The roads were going to be a nightmare.
I flipped through a few more channels but nothing caught my interest, so I turned it off. Right as the screen went black, my phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Mr. Marlowe," the receptionist said, voice shaky. "A-A... Anotta Anotov is here. She would like to speak with you."
Ah, shit. Anotta?
"Don’t send her up," I replied. "I’m coming down."
"She is... scary, Mr. Marlowe."
Yeah. I already knew that. That power-tripping, human-looking monster was terrifying.
I hung up, set the half-eaten sandwich on the dining table, and left the penthouse. I rode the elevator down to the ground floor. Why the hell was she here? Hadn’t she already done enough damage to the company? Though if I had accepted her earlier deal to spy on Project Phoenix, maybe she wouldn’t have gone public with everything.
The elevator doors opened. A small crowd had gathered in the reception area. Some people were taking photos, others trying to talk to her, but her bodyguards kept them at a distance. What a mess.
Fuck. I didn’t want her anywhere near me or inside the penthouse, but meeting her out here would only draw more eyes. I could already imagine the headlines: ’Who is the mystery man meeting with Anotta Anotov?’ The last thing I needed was more unwanted attention.
"This bitch..."
I held the elevator door open. Anotta spotted me, our eyes met, and she immediately started walking in my direction. Her bodyguards held the crowd back. I stepped inside and pressed the button for my floor. The doors closed, and the elevator began its ascent.
We stood in silence for a moment, just staring at each other. Shit... just what I needed. More trouble.
"Why?" I asked curtly.
She exhaled. The doors dinged open on my floor. Without a word, she stepped out and I followed. I unlocked the penthouse door with my keycard and we both walked inside.
"I’m here regarding Project Phoenix," she began, heading straight for the living room. "I’m sure you already know that, Evan."
"Yes," I replied, following behind her. "But why come to me?"
"The public reaction to Project Phoenix has been terrible," she said, sitting down on the double couch. "Really bad."
"Gee, I wonder why," I said dryly, dropping onto the single couch across from her. "You leaked everything before it was ready."
"I couldn’t risk my money, Marlowe," she shook her head.
"So what now?"
"I’m withdrawing," she exhaled. "The Project is going to become a disaster. No one will want it."
"What?"
"I tried calling Nala but she didn’t answer," she shrugged. "So I decided to drop by and tell you personally."
"You can’t," I said firmly. "This Project is... everything to her."
"Don’t take it so personally, Marlowe. This is business." She leaned back. "Don’t get dramatic and sentimental."
"You can’t just withdraw whenever you feel like it!"
"Oh, I can," she replied calmly. "And I will."
"No," I said. "You came all the way here for a reason. You wouldn’t do that for nothing."
She didn’t answer right away. She leaned back, crossed her arms, and stared at me for a long moment. Then she turned her head toward the balcony. She stood up and walked over. I followed her. She slid the glass door open and stepped outside.
I stepped out behind her and closed the door. The rain had stopped, but the sky was still dark with heavy clouds. Snow would start falling soon.
"I want to put my own man inside the company," she said, gazing out at the city. "And I want your help."
"Your own man?"
"As Nala’s secretary," she continued. "He’ll keep an eye on Project Phoenix and report everything back to me."
"So... a spy?" I asked.
"I wouldn’t call it that."
"If I help you with this, you won’t pull out of the Project?"
She glanced back at me. "I’ll consider it."
Without another word, she walked back inside, slid the door shut behind her, and left the penthouse. The front door clicked closed a moment later.
I exhaled heavily, lit up a cigarette, and sat down on one of the sunbeds.
Well, shit.
Letting a spy into the company would be a disaster. What the hell was Anotta really after? She knew the public hated Project Phoenix, yet she was still willing to stay involved instead of pulling out. I had a feeling she was hiding something bigger, but I couldn’t figure out what.
"Fuck."
I took a long drag and leaned back, staring at the dark sky. I had to talk to Nala about this. But if she confronted Anotta directly, the woman would definitely withdraw and the Project would collapse. I needed to be smart about this.
I pulled out my phone, opened my contacts, and hovered over Nala’s name. My finger hesitated. Telling her might end badly... but working together to feed the mole fake information could work. Or Anotta might catch on and pull out anyway. Either choice sucked.
In the end, I tapped her name. The phone rang a few times before she picked up.
"Hey, you."
"Hey," I replied with a smile. "How’s my busy CEO doing?"
"As busy as you can imagine," she sighed. "The media is demanding an explanation. I’m writing my speech right now."
"Hmm. Good luck with that."
"Yeah..."
"So, uh," I cleared my throat. "Well..."
"What?" she asked. "Spill it."
Shit. Telling her would lead to disaster. I couldn’t do it. I had to keep my mouth shut and do what Anotta wanted. Otherwise, she’d pull out and everything would crumble.
"Nothing," I said, forcing a smile. "When are you guys coming home?"
"We’ll probably be late," she replied. "Is Minne home? She mentioned visiting her mother today."
"Yeah, she’s gone."
"Can you check if she put food in Mik’s bowl? Tessa is really strict about her diet."
I chuckled. "I will, don’t worry. I love you."
"I love you too, Evan."
I hung up and exhaled, taking another drag from my cigarette.
God damn it. These schemes, playing people behind their backs... it was too much. I wasn’t built for this. But I couldn’t back out now.
I had to deal with Anotta.
Somehow.
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