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There's no describing the looks on the board members' faces, including Elias's, as they witness their CEO lose his mind. Except, the longer I study their expressions, the more I recognize shame. So microscopic, I nearly miss it. Perhaps, there's truth to Warren's words—we're in a den riddled with money-hungry honchos.
So, when I catch Hayden's gaze a second time and find it even smugger than before, I simply nod, prompting him to pull out his phone and start tapping away. Enacting phase two. Made possible by the delicious little secret he unveiled in the breakroom that'll make this even sweeter...
"THEY STAGED A COO! THEY..."
Ding. Ding. Ding...
A few board members look to their pockets.
"BOTH OF THEM! SLIMY, ENTITLED BRATS, AFTER MONEY THEY DIDN'T EARN..."
Ding. Ding. Ding...
Hushed whispers skate across the room as they share and point to their phones...
"SUCH A FUCKING EMBARRASSMENT ON THIS FAMILY! UNDESERVING OF SUCH A STRONG LINEAGE! A WASTE OF PRIVILEGED POTENTIAL! A GLARING PIT STAIN ON OUR—"
He halts abruptly, the last of his rambles echoing between the glass, mingled with the growing urgency in the air. The board members shake their heads to one another, hiss beneath their breaths, gesturing to their CEO, until a woman clad in a pristine, ebony two-piece suit bursts to her feet—
Right as Elias peers over his phone at Hayden, both exchanging a look that lingers. Relief outpours from the youngest, while the eldest swims in his pool of understanding, yet surfacing from a pained regret. The sight is something I can't begin to comprehend but will never forget, as it's telling of the most heartfelt of discoveries...
Hayden cares more about his brother than the demise of his father.
The board woman scoffs at Warren. "I thought the whole reason you aren't in your office much is because you oversee movie sets."
He hesitates, before arching a brow. "Yes, that is—"
"He told me he was delegating foreign rights," another says.
Warren doubles down, shaking his head. "What are you all looking a—"
"Your work logs." Hayden's voice rakes up his father's spine, to which he can't help but twist the knife. "I sent them to every person on your board—including lower management, which may be why we're amassing quite an audience."
Lips curling with disgust, Warren flicks his gaze toward the glass, only to slither it back to his youngest son. He rounds the table on deliberate steps, until he stares right down at Hayden, arms crossed.
"I don't clock my hours," he challenges.
Hayden smiles up at him. "Oh, but your assistants do."
Warren's expression fractures like glass.
Rising to his feet, reaching heights surpassing Warren, Hayden looks down at his father, an inch from his nose, seeping all the air from his lunges—and the room.
"How ironic that you sat me at that tiny desk yourself, assigning me a station that would later prove to be your downfall. I was surprised, too, to discover all the power personal assistants possess. Every email address in the company at my disposal, and every executive's work logs." Hayden snickers in his face. "One click, and I sent the proof you throw all your work onto Elias, your own son, to everyone in the room."
More whispers.
"What do you do all day, hmm?"
Amid the hushed accusations, a little sound escapes Warren.
"Want to know what I think?" He pokes him in the chest. "I think you're off doing nothing productive. I rarely smell a whiff of alcohol on you, so you're not an alcoholic. Your eyes don't scream substance abuse, which leaves only one answer." He throws a quick glance down the line of chairs. "Spoiler alert. It's the obvious one."
Fists clenching at his sides, Warren grits out. "And what's that?"
Hayden bites down on a laugh, eyes twinkling with delight. "That you're off being a manwhore." Like scorching steam, blood rises up onto Warren's features, popping veins and flaring his nostrils, when Hayden nears even closer. "Takes one to know one, huh?"
Combusting in a fit of rage, Warren shoves Hayden back into his chair, storming past Elias, who's finally woken up, like an angry funnel cloud, forming far off in the horizon. His father's at a safe distance—for now.
