The Shadow Tycoon
Copyright© 2026 by CaffeinatedTales
Chapter 23
The office desk phone rang abruptly. Vera’s husband, Gape, glanced at it for a moment before picking up.
“Hello?” After a brief pause, he raised an eyebrow slightly. “I see ... yes, I understand. Of course, I have a dinner engagement tonight. You know how it is, this is a critical period...”
He exchanged a few more words before hanging up. He lingered in thought for a moment, then withdrew his gaze, glanced at his secretary, then toward the sofa. The secretary understood at once, appreciating his tacit consideration, and walked over on her red heels.
The Ristowan Group was a conglomerate spanning multiple industries. In Sabine City, it could already be considered a pillar of the local economy. Naturally, each reporting cycle brought a staggering volume of financial statements.
Gape, as a senior audit accountant, held a critical position. He was not a local, he had relocated here after accepting the job.
This was the most pivotal moment of his life. The company was preparing to restructure its management, including the finance division.
He had always maintained a smooth working relationship with both management and executives. The vice president had already hinted that if he could take the next step, he would be brought in as a partner.
Even the lowest-tier partnership would represent a real leap in social standing. If he secured this position, within three to five years he could vault from the middle class into the upper echelon.
He did indeed have a dinner engagement that evening, but it was not the kind Vera or most people imagined, not a semi-public meeting to discuss business, but a transaction involving bribery.
Every ascent required nourishment. Gape understood that well. He dealt directly with numbers, with flows of capital. He knew how to feed himself.
He moved to the sofa, calming the secretary while quietly outlining her tasks for the evening.
More than an hour later, the secretary had gone into the rest room to recover her energy for the night’s engagement. Gape sprayed himself with cologne, hesitated for a few seconds, then picked up the phone.
“It’s me. Look into my wife, and the company she’s working for. I want everything on that company. And find out what they did tonight.”
After hanging up, an expression flickered across his face, something difficult to define. He sat half-perched on the edge of his desk, staring out the window. After a moment, he turned back and buried himself once again in endless figures and receipts.
Later that evening, William and Vera arrived at a restaurant on the edge of the city center, one said to be “quite good.”
“Quite good” meant respectable, but not crowded. They were seated immediately by the waiter at a table near the edge, with a clear view of the street outside.
As for Richard and the other two, they were little more than tools, not even formally employed. They had no place at this table.
“Ladies first,” the waiter had just handed William the menu when William turned to Vera with a smile. His appearance, combined with that effortless courtesy, fulfilled nearly every expectation a woman might have.
Whether it was the lighting or the warming evening, Vera felt her cheeks heat slightly. She met William’s gaze for a moment, then accepted the menu without protest and began to order.