Elijah P.O.V
I knew that the moment I slapped Kain would lead me to suffer later but I will not tolerate disrespecting our customers whether they are family or not. Kain looked at me with shock in his eyes, holding his cheek which turned bright red due the force of my slap. I turned to face my dad and pseudo brothers. "I apologize on behalf of the company for the way our young master behaved. Please follow our Project Manager to Conference 4. He will guide you on the 'actual' rules and guidelines for our collaboration." I spoke eyeing Kain with a glare to shut up and not cause anymore trouble. Kain, thankfully got the message and shut up despite glaring at me with hate.
"Why should we believe you ? You might not be kind to us and your uncle and protect your brother as we are the bad guys." a voice spoke up. It was Timeo Chevalier. I knew that he was right to question about everything but Kain as a brother. I let out a sharp and bitter laugh which puzzled all three. "Mr. Fabbri, Mr. Archambeau and Mr. Dubois, President Fabbri is a fair and just man. You can rely on him to solve this issue without bias." I looked to see who defended me. It was the new intern I hired 3 months ago, Donovan Santos. He impressed me with his brilliant marketing strategies and new ideas on a line I am currently designing new shoes for. I was floored that he was willing to stand up for me. I spoke up. "Indeed, Mr. Santos is correct. I draw a clear line between family and business. I don't mix the two at all." I replied. Hope and fear warred in me. I wanted to use this chance to build a relationship with them. My true family. I controlled my emotions and expressions in order to not give Kain a reason to find my weakness.
It like an eternity passed by when "Alright. We shall listen and decide for ourselves." came a deep voice similar to mine. I looked up to see the man who I looked exactly like in front of me speak. Our dad, Andre Fabbri. I wished that Lucien was here to meet him. We look exactly like him with the same eye and hair colour except Lucien resembles more of Mom and I resemble Dad. I nodded my head to express my gratitude and gestured Zeke to take them.
Zeke nodded and gestured to our guests to follow. Timeo, Dad and Kylian left although Kylian kept looking at me. I knew that he was very suspicious of what just happened but sorry, I am not going to reveal anything. Once they left along with Thompson and the other employees, it was just Kain and I in the room. I turned to face him. He looked so angry that his face was red. I just stared at him without saying a word. That set him off.
"You bastard, how dare you interfere in my meeting ? Just because you have a higher standing than me doesn't me you get to abuse me like this. Just you wait. I will tell Uncle Leon and Aunt Ilya about all of this. You will pay for this." he yelled loud. I am pretty sure that they all would have heard it. I laughed. Kain froze in shock at the fact the sound of my laugh. "Really ? If Father (distaste filled his tone) found out that you decided to make Uncle Andre (Sadness covered his tone) work without pay, he will definitely kill you. Not to mention that, Uncle Andre is the favourite of the Archambeau and Agosti Patriarchs. Can you handle the consequences ?" I snapped back at him. Kain looked shocked and realised just how badly nearly fucked up the matter. I felt satisfied at the expression on Kain's face. "Leave now. I will handle this. Don't worry about it. You are still the Young Master." I said sarcastically. Kain looked ready to burst and stomped out of the room in fury.
I took a long and deep breath. Now, that I felt calm, I couldn't believe at how I acted in front of Dad and my older brothers. I felt myself turning red in mortification. I smacked my right cheek to get myself out of the embarrassment. A knock sounded on the door. "Come in." I said. A head peeked in. It was Donovan. "Boss, they are waiting for you." he said. I picked up the contracts from the table and headed out to Conference 4. I felt a little mortified at showing such an unprofessional attitude. I looked at Donovan and knew that we needed to talk. " Donovan after the meeting, come with me." I said. Donovan had a fear but it quickly morphed into a forced smile. I chuckled at his behaviour. I lifted a hand and ruffled his hair. "It's nothing bad. I do this all the time. Relax. You are going to make everyone think that I bully you." I said. "Bully ?! No way ! You are the best boss and an even better person than him. If anyone says such things, they can eat my shoe." Donovan spouted. I laughed.
With that we entered the room to see the discussion in full swing. Zeke confidently pitched the project to Andre and his apprentices with the others pitching in. I shooed Donovan to his place and stood in a corner to observe. "Is there anything you would like to ask, sirs ?" Zeke asked finishing the presentation. Kylian piped up "I am curious about the designer. Do you know who designed this line ?" he asked. Zeke smiled and replied. "The designer for this line is Dante. Unfortunately, he couldn't be here today due to personal issues but once that is resolved, he will join us." Kylian and Timeo looked contemplative. Andre decided to raise a question. "Who was that man just now ? The one who convinced us to hear you out ?" he asked. That was unexpected. Zeke and all the employees in the room froze.
Kylian noticed the unusual tension in the room. 'Is this something we shouldn't ask ?" Zeke shook himself out of the stupor. "No,no,no. It was just unexpected. Sorry for worrying. That was president Elijah Fabbri. He is the firstborn of the family. President has been working at Luxway since he was 15. You could say that president is very passionate about the work we do." he said. "If that is the case, then why did he not meet with us but let that rude boy do so ?" I nearly wheezed out laughing. I liked Timeo. Lucien and he will definitely compliment each other. I decided to spare Zeke from forcing himself to answer. "That is very simple. They hate me and prefer my cousin more than me. They believe that he is better suited than me." I replied stepping out of the shadows.
Everyone looked at me. I knew that my answer puzzled them but I decided to talk. "While taht may be the case, they can't do anything about it as the board will not consent to the change hence, they try and block me with everything they have. That is why, I am unable to meet you. I sincerely apologise for the problem today and hope this can be considered a an appropriate compensation." I said handing over the contract files in my hand.
Kylian took it and began to read. Once he started reading, his eyes became huge. This gave me a sense of smug satisfaction. Andre and Timeo looked at the reaction and opened the copy in front of them. As expected they looked shocked. The contract gave them the full right and access to the creativity and design which Dante wholeheartedly agreed to as it was appropriate. Not only, that they were the decision makers. They had all the power.
Andre looked at me wondering if I lost it. "Does this satisfy as a worthy compensation ?" I asked. Kylian and Timeo looked at each other communicating silently. Kylian looked at me and spoke. "You will not regret this ?" he asked. "I will not." I replied without any hesitation. The three began to chat among themselves and finally signed the contract. The employees were vibrating in excitement and were waiting for the men to leave so that could let loose. We finally shook hands. "See you in 2 days, president Fabbri. Happy Cooperation." Timeo said. "Same to you as well." I replied. "Thompson, please escort them to their car." I asked. Thompson nodded and led the way.
Once they were out of sight, everyone let out a loud cheer. "Well done, everyone. Take a long lunch break and come back. No drinking. Donovan, come and see me at the end of the day." I said. Everyone nodded.
I left and headed back to my office. I wonder how Lucien is doing. I can't wait to tell him everything. With that I began to focus on my work.