Chapter 445
Chapter 445:
“Please,” she pressed. “Isolde will be there. Don’t you want to show her we’re strong p>
A long silence stretched across the line.
“What time?” Grayson asked.
Belle hung up, a cruel smile spreading across her face.
𝗗o𝗐𝗇𝗹𝗼а𝘥 PD𝗙𝘀 𝗳𝘳𝖾𝖾 о𝗇
“Tonight,” she whispered to the empty room. “I’m going to buy her entire company right in front of her salad p>
Le Bernardin was a temple of seafood and silence. The lighting was low, the tablecloths crisp white, and the air hummed with the sound of million-dollar deals being made over tuna tartare.
The Carson Dynamics table was quiet. Too quiet.
Isolde raised her glass. “To the future. Whatever it holds p>
The twelve engineers around the table raised their glasses hesitantly. They were nervous. They had seen the news. They knew InnoTech was offering double salaries.
Then the hushed atmosphere of the restaurant broke.
Belle walked in wearing a red dress that was entirely too loud for the room, cut low in the back and screaming for attention. Grayson walked beside her, looking like a man marching to the gallows in a bespoke suit.
Belle spotted the Carson Dynamics table immediately. She steered Grayson straight toward them.
“Well, well,” Belle said, her voice carrying. “Is this the company retreat? It looks a bit… intimate p>
The engineers shifted in their seats. Some looked down.
Grayson’s eyes locked onto Isolde. She was wearing a simple black blazer, her hair pulled back. She looked regal. Untouchable.
“Belle,” Grayson warned. “Not here p>
Belle ignored him, tightening her grip on his arm. “I’m just being generous, Gray. Engineers of this caliber deserve to be compensated properly.” She glanced at the table. “Following a sinking ship only wastes talent p>
Isolde remained seated, turning her wine glass slowly between her fingers. “Talent and labor are different things,” she said evenly. “What money buys is usually the latter p>
Belle’s smile turned cold. “Let’s see how your employees choose p>
She reached into her clutch and produced a stack of heavy cream-colored envelopes, which she tossed onto the center of the table, right next to the bread basket.
“InnoTech is expanding,” Belle announced, addressing the table as though Isolde weren’t there. “These are offer letters. Triple your current salary. Fifty thousand dollar signing bonus. Valid until midnight tonight p>
Gasps rippled around the table. Triple salary. Life-changing money.
“You have no shame,” Harper hissed, rising to her feet.
“It’s a free market, honey,” Belle smirked. “Talent deserves to be paid.” She looked at Tom, the lead propulsion engineer. “Tom, didn’t you say you wanted to buy a house in Westchester? This buys you the house p>
Tom looked at the envelope. Then he looked at Isolde.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Carson,” he mumbled. He reached out and took the envelope. “I have a family.” He stood.
It was the first domino.
One by one, six other engineers rose from their chairs, grabbed the envelopes, muttered apologies, and walked away from the table to stand behind Belle. It was a massacre — a public evisceration of Isolde’s workforce, performed over a three-star dinner.
Harper was trembling with rage. “You ungrateful lot p>