Mr. Villain's Lovely Wife

Lovely wife 227

Two Empires

"Are you sure about this?" Liam asked, his eyes locked on the tablet in his hand as he scrolled through the files Mondo had handed him.

"Yes, sir," Mondo replied. "It seems that your previous assumptions about the mafia being involved were right. Cassandra's disappearance wasn't voluntary. Everything was cleaned too fast. No records, no leaks, no press. Someone is steering this.. Even the images that they released were doctored, its all fake."

Liam's jaw tightened as he read through the timeline. Cassandra had vanished less than three hours after the staged overdose story broke. The footage from her penthouse was gone from every feed. All medical records had been scrubbed. Her agency posted a vague statement about her needing 'long-term rest. The system had kicked in fast. Too fast. "They didn't like the detour,” Liam muttered. “I used her to disrupt the narrative. They intervened immediately. We just confirmed the scale."

He turned off the tablet and handed it back. "Do what I told you to do. Lock down our contacts. Make sure Izzy's covered."

"She's safe," Mondo said. "The meeting with the Rossi Group is about to start. Since the Madam is still 'injured, she'll be attending remotely. I've already asked our people to watch from behind the scenes as this is a critical moment."

Liam gave a sharp nod. He knew Izzy was next door. The adjoining suite had been secured since morning. She hadn't left the room since the press conference. Not because she couldn't, but because they both agreed it was better for now. He turned and headed for the main office doors of Horvath Holdings.

The hall smelled like polished stone and old money. Security gave him a slight nod as he passed, but no one stopped him. Everyone here knew who he was. And more importantly, they knew who he would become. Eventually.

He pushed open the double doors into the executive wing. The office hadn't changed-dark wood, steel fixtures, Horvath family portraits on the wall like a carefully curated threat.

Olivier Horvath stood by the far table, flipping through a set of printed market reports. He didn't look up immediately. When he did, he set the paper down and folded his arms.

"You've got some guts showing up after that disaster," Olivier said. "Eggs? Tomatoes? Lawyers getting tackled?"

Liam walked forward without hesitation. "We're containing it."

"Is that what you're calling it? Because it looked like your wife's legal team just

I were

a coward?" Liam

"You-"

people's personal problems," someone butted in. "We're here to talk about the future of Horvath Holdings now that its CEO is still

he was already certain

were older, seasoned men like Mr. Reinhardt, whose loyalty wavered depending on who held the stronger cards that day. Others were new-young, sharp, too eager. Too easily influenced. He adjusted the cuff of his jacket, checking his watch. Five minutes past the scheduled start time. No one commented.

a seat three chairs down. He was calm. Too calm. That annoyed Olivier more than the fact that he had shown up

finally

throat or wait for the room to settle. He simply stepped forward

"The press conference. The backlash. The press assault that followed." His eyes moved deliberately from one end of the table to the other. “And we've all read the statement that came out this

and cannot fulfill his duties, the board may vote to reassign temporary voting rights

son sat still, one leg

1/2

Two Empires

again. Olivier hated it.

set the

position clear. Liam is the CEO of Horvath Industries. He's built a strong profile, and the board of that entity has trusted him with expansion in logistics and private

that acknowledgment settle in. Then

mothership. The parent company. The one holding the controlling interests across the family's legacy assets-real estate, maritime, telecom, energy. A different animal entirely." He leaned

narrowing slightly,

at Liam this time, but the