After the tense phone call with Bobo finally came to an end, Max didn’t allow himself a single moment to relax. The pieces were on the board, but he needed to make a series of intricate preparations for exactly what he intended to do next, as well as preparing airtight contingencies for what might happen afterward.
He spent the next hour making a few discreet calls here and there, shifting assets, and ensuring his network was on high alert. He formulated multiple backup plans just in case his primary strategy fell through, because things didn’t always work out the way they were intended. That was a harsh, unforgiving lesson he had learned in both his past life and his current one. It was a profound wisdom born from failure, something that Ramon, in his current state of triumph, seemed to completely lack.
Max leaned back in his leather chair, staring out the window as he analyzed his opponent. He’s been through the brutal struggles to get the Gilt Rats up to the syndicate level. I’ll give him that, Max thought, his eyes narrowing.
But there’s a distinct, dangerous curve to these things. It’s incredibly hard for a while, a daily fight for survival, and then it gets really hard when you push for the top. But when you finally break through, when you control the city, when you have everyone and nearly everything practically under your thumb, things suddenly start to get easy again. Too easy.
Max steepled his fingers, reflecting on the psychology of power.
A person gets confident. They start to feel like they are invincible, like they can just do whatever they want without consequence. So, they start to make careless mistakes. They make fewer backup plans because they get too used to things always going their way. They lose their edge.
A dark shadow crossed Max’s face as a memory from his previous existence surfaced. It was the exact same for me. I grew complacent at the top, and I paid for it with my life. Which is exactly why I won’t make that same fatal mistake again. Ramon is blind to his own arrogance, and I am going to use that against him.
Later that evening, however, Max received a genuine surprise. His assistant informed him of a request for a sudden meeting. What made it shocking was the identity of the two individuals who had arrived and specifically requested to see him together.
They were two individuals who were inextricably linked by blood, but who were notoriously not on the best terms with each other, nor were they on good terms with him.
The heavy oak doors of his office opened, and Max stared in quiet disbelief at the sight before him. Standing there, looking incredibly out of place and visibly nervous, were Chad and Karen Stern. Mother and son.
"I really never thought that this would happen," Max said, his voice laced with dry amusement as he gestured for them to step inside. "To see the two of you standing together, and to willingly come into my territory for a meeting with me? Well, to even call a meeting to see me at all is a miracle in itself."
He didn’t offer them a seat. He simply stared them down, letting the silence stretch.
"So tell me, what is this about? I thought my business was entirely done with you two," Max asked, his tone sharpening. He looked at the young man first. "Well, I still deal with Chad from time to time on operational matters. But as for you, Karen, you should be busy making sure the shopping mall runs smoothly so it’s in perfect condition for when it fully goes back into your hands. Why are you here?"
The two of them looked at each other for a long, awkward moment. Finally, Karen gestured to Chad, silently urging him to speak up. She correctly guessed that since Chad had slightly more of a working relationship with Max these days, it would be better received if he was the one who asked for the favor.
Chad cleared his throat, shifting his weight uncomfortably. "There’s been a situation that has come up regarding the family," Chad began, avoiding Max’s direct gaze. "You see, nearly everyone in the inner circle of the Stern family is now fully aware of what is happening to Bobo."
Max kept his face entirely neutral, betraying nothing.
"They know how her company is going to be taken over from the inside," Chad continued. "She didn’t officially ask the family for help, but let’s just say that everyone has their insiders, spies, or connections to these types of corporate things. Secrets don’t stay hidden long among our relatives. In this specific case, Bobo even openly spoke about it on her social media platforms a few hours ago. My guess is she was desperately hoping maybe it would garner some public attention, spark some outrage to scare off the investors, but the posts have been completely buried. Scrubbed from the internet by whoever is pulling the strings."
Chad let out a heavy sigh. "And as for the rest of our family... I guess no one is willing to lift a finger to help her. There’s no profit in it for them."
Now, Max was genuinely surprised. If he was guessing right, he somewhat had an idea of where this highly unusual conversation was about to go, but hearing it from their lips was another matter entirely.
"With this situation being what it is," Chad said, his voice gaining a fraction of earnestness, "honestly, if we could right now, I would help her with my own finances. And it’s the exact same for my mother. After the two of us have practically lost everything we held dear, we want to help her get her life back."
"And I recently lost everything handing it back to you," Karen interjected. Her voice initially carried a sharp, almost spiteful edge, a remnant of her usual haughty demeanor. But realizing who she was talking to, she quickly corrected her posture, swallowed her pride, and repeated the sentiment in a slightly softer, more pleading tone. "I know what it feels like to have the rug pulled out from under you."
Max held up a hand, stopping them before they could go any further.
"I can see exactly where this is going," Max said, his voice dropping to a cold, businesslike register. "Through your various channels and whispers, you must have realized that it was us, the Billion Bloodline Group, that ended up investing heavily in Bobo’s company. You know I hold a stake."
He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the desk. "But even if you didn’t know those specific details, you know one undeniable thing: that I have a massive amount of money, and that I hold ultimate power within this group. So, you came all the way here to ask me to help her?"
The two of them slowly nodded, looking incredibly sheepish as they stood under his piercing gaze.
Max let out a humorless laugh. "Do you know, I’ve always found that people are always exponentially more generous when it comes to spending other people’s money," Max said, his words dripping with sarcasm. "I find it incredibly hard to believe that the two of you just had a sudden, miraculous change of heart."
He stood up, his imposing figure towering over the desk. "Are you honestly trying to tell me that if you did still have your vast fortunes, and this hostile takeover happened to Bobo, that you would really, truly reach into your own pockets to try and help out your sister and your daughter?"
"We would!" Karen shouted, her composure cracking. "I don’t want her to feel the same horrific way as I felt when I was stripped of my status..."
Karen’s voice turned deeply somber, the fight draining out of her. "For far too long, I have felt like this family is a curse. All of us constantly forgetting about each other, stabbing each other in the back, and just focusing on one thing: winning at all costs. If I really didn’t care about her at all, then I wouldn’t even be standing in this room humbling myself and asking you for a favor."
"Is that right?" Max said, his voice deadly quiet. The temperature in the room seemed to plummet. "Because it is so incredibly hard to ask a family member for a favor, isn’t it? Especially asking a favor from a family member that you brutally ridiculed your whole entire life. A family member you systematically tried to bully and mentally destroy. A family member you actively conspired against, ensuring they couldn’t use a single, solitary cent of their own rightful money."
Karen and Chad paled, taking a step back as Max’s aura flared with suppressed rage.
"You starved him out to the point where the innocent people around him ended up dying because of your greed and your cruelty," Max growled, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of the heavy mahogany desk. "I am honestly surprised the two of you even have the sheer balls to walk in here and ask me to act like family after all of the horrific things you have done. Get out of my sight. Right now. Before I force you to leave with my own two hands."
The intense, burning feelings of betrayal and sorrow weren’t entirely his own. The transmigrated Max didn’t possess the exact same emotional scars. But if he was even to entertain the thought of taking in their hypocritical request, or if his actions made it seem like he actually took what these abusers said into consideration, it wouldn’t have been right. It would have been a massive insult to the memory of the "old Max", the original soul whose body he was currently inhabiting. He had to honor that pain by drawing a hard line.
Karen and Chad saw the absolute murder in his eyes. Without uttering another word, they turned around and practically fled from the office, the heavy doors clicking shut behind them.
Max stood alone in the quiet office, the echoes of the past fading into the shadows. He released his grip on the desk and exhaled a long breath.
Outside his window, the sun finally dipped below the horizon. The day had finally come to an end. Tomorrow was the day of the big board meeting, and the real war was about to begin.