Chapter 83.1

Chapter 83.1

― André de Lafayette, have you already given up on protecting the company?

The sharp voice of Lorraine crackled through the receiver. André sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

[What are you talking about out of nowhere?]

He answered coldly.

― Do you know who sent something to our house yesterday?

[I don’t have time. Get to the point.]

André shot back, suppressing a rising wave of nausea.

― Gordon Lowell sent one of Picasso’s Cubist pieces as a gift to father. You know what that means, don’t you?

Sending a Picasso painting worth millions of dollars as a bribe to the Collins family, who held the casting vote, meant Gordon Lowell was burning bridges to make his move.

Where did he get the money from? There’s something suspicious about it.

As far as André knew, Gordon had almost no cash available. He rode on Grace Lowell’s coattails in lavish comfort, but his only real income was his salary from the Lafayette-Lowell Group. Even that was spent buying up company shares, and he’d pile up considerable debts from trying to keep up with high society.

If not for the shares his son, James Lowell, strategically acquired through his fund, combined with those inherited from Grace, there would have been no hope for a hostile takeover.

― André, are you listening? Want me to tell you another funny story? Gordon Lowell invited my father and Chris McCabe to a golf resort in the Bahamas. They flew on the company jet with a bunch of high-class call girls.

André frowned.

Chris McCabe was a partner at the 80-year-old law firm McCabe & Son, and the largest shareholder of the Lafayette-Lowell Group, owning 3.7% of the company. The McCabe family had been close with the Lafayette family for generations, and Chris was no exception. But he was notorious as a womaniser.

[When?]

― Last weekend. I’m telling you this out of old friendship. There are people who can’t be dealt with using straightforward methods. Gordon Lowell’s rotten tactics work better on them.

André rubbed his temples. The battle to sway shareholders was fierce behind the scenes. But he’d never stooped to bribing with paintings or women.

So the information she went out and found would serve very well.

[So, what are you trying to say?]

André loosened his tie and undid one button as a suffocating feeling crept in.

― I’m giving you an ultimatum. Marry me, and this all gets resolved easily. Why complicate things when we can both win? I get the trust fund, you keep the Lafayette-Lowell Group. We divorce cleanly after we both get what we want. Why are you fighting this so hard? Do you actually have a woman?”

André’s voice turned ice-cold.

[Are you done?]

― No, I’m not done yet! Without the Collins’ shares, you and your incompetent father will be ousted at the shareholders’ meeting. Gordon Lowell, no, before he changed his last name, he was Gordon Smith, right? A third-rate thug who used people as if they were his servants is about to take over the Lafayette-Lowell Group. What a disgrace. If I were you, I’d rather face the guillotine with honor.

Her venomous tone dripped with mockery. Judging by her desperate actions, she was playing a risky hand.

[Lorraine Cabot, watch your mouth. Before you regret it.]

André’s voice was low and chilling.

Silence hung on the other end. She seemed to be weighing her next move.

Having known André since childhood, Lorraine knew him well. He wasn’t forgiving to those who crossed the line or tried to climb over him.

Even cornered, a Lafayette was still a Lafayette. Even in the worst case scenario where he lost control of the company, André was still the largest shareholder.

The André de Lafayette she knew was a man that would never give up until the very end. Even if it meant losing his arms and legs in the process of being stripped of his management rights, he was a man who would viciously tear his opponent’s head off.

If he set his mind to it, turning against the Collins and crushing Lorraine beyond recovery would be nothing. It would be stupid to live in New York and make Lafayette an enemy.