Chapter 137: Jared’s Ruthless Tactics
Paul shouted, and his voice reverberated through the office. Looking around, he saw that his staff had become motionless statues. Moreover, they were all staring at him as though they saw something beyond him with the same pair of odd and almost fearful eyes.
“Just do what I said! Do you not hear me?” Paul let out another yell, this time with a crimson expression on his face and clenched hands.
As Paul’s voice faded, a commotion suddenly erupted at the door. He looked around to see dozens of stern–faced, uniformly moving bodyguards in black clothing charging in through the front door.
“What’s happening?” Paul’s thoughts were racing, and he looked scared and bewildered simultaneously.
The symbol on the black uniforms of the bodyguards drew Paul’s attention just as his mind began to fill with doubt. It was a symbol that could not be missed.
“It’s the Brooks family! Their elite bodyguards,” he mumbled to himself in surprise.
Paul’s heart stopped, and his eyes widened in shock. He turned his stiff neck, fixedly stared at Jared, standing nearby in a composed manner, and opened his mouth as if attempting to say something incoherent.
“Y–you… are the company’s CEO, Mr. Brooks?” His voice was barely above a whisper as he stutter–talked.
Jared towered over Paul, his eyes penetrating and frigid, as if they were looking into a dead man’s eyes. His presence was overwhelming.
Paul was no fool and knew Jared wouldn’t answer because of this. He could draw a startling conclusion from the current scenario and the insignia he had seen.
It turned out that the leader of the Brooks Corporation was the one standing before him.
“I’m so sorry!” Paul knelt in fear, shivering, and said, “I was blind and offended you. Please have mercy on me! I’m nobody important, so you can spare me.”
With guilt for his inhumane actions, Paul wished to rip out his eyes. Unaware that Joseph, Jared’s well–known assistant, was standing close, he had been directing his anger at Jared.
He didn’t recognize Jared because he always kept a low profile and avoided the public eye. On the other hand, Joseph stood out since his face was instantly recognizable due to his many appearances on behalf of the president of the Brooks Corporation.
Right then, Jared pulled out a picture of Julia. His expressionless face looked like an ice sculpture as he stared intently at Paul.
“Do you know why I came to find you?” he inquired in a soothing but unnerving tone.
“I-” Paul gazed at the photo with terror and gulped dryly when he recognized the individual.
He hated Philip, who was meant to be his friend, even more than before. How else could Philip have provoked this vicious and nasty monster without introducing Julia to Jared?
“Mr. President Brooks, it is not a crime to be clueless! Believe it or not, I was unaware that you headed up the Brooks empire. I wouldn’t dare compete with you if I were aware of that. I deserve to die and to be beaten!” Paul’s voice was full of pleading desperation.
Paul then girded himself, raised his fist, and gave his face a resounding slap. The sound of his hand hitting his face resonated around the room, each slap fueling his self–punishment. Paul’s
acts were a frantic attempt to atone for his unwitting offenses against President Brooks and the Brooks company.
He slapped himself and yelled, “I was wrong,” his voice breaking.
Jared observed with a blank countenance and an emotionless gaze.
After hitting himself for a while, Paul was too tired to keep going. He didn’t need a mirror to notice that the swelling from the pain he was feeling as a result of his shame and terror made his face look like a pig’s head.
“President Brooks, are you satisfied now?” Paul inquired warily, his voice shaking as he glanced at Jared with a mix of apprehension and anticipation in his eyes..
Jared sat down with dignified poise, and a regal sophistication appeared to fill the space around him. “Mr. Andrew,” he began, his yoice even and confident, “I came to you today to discuss a major business arrangement. There’s no need to kneel. Get comfortable.” His tone was inviting, but there was no way to say no to what he said.
“Is he serious about doing business with me?” Paul asked, his thoughts racing. He picked himself up off the floor, brushed himself off, and greeted Jared with an eager smile. “What do you need to talk to me about, sir?”
Jared cast a sidelong glance at Joseph, communicating with him non–verbally. Joseph caught on quickly, and he promptly handed Paul the contract.
Paul took the contract from the table, confused, his hands shaking. His face went as white as a sheet, and his voice hardly rose above a whisper as he took in the material. “You want to acquire my business at a price that’s a tenth of the going rate?”
Since his business was not bankrupt, Jared’s action may be interpreted as a direct seizure, a power play not up for discussion.
With tears in his eyes, Paul knelt again and said, “Sir, I realize I was wrong. I promise I will forget Julia and won’t bother her anymore! His regretful and anxious tone broke through.
As an experienced entrepreneur, Paul immediately saw that Jared’s actions were motivated by his feelings for Julia. The realization sank into his heart like a frigid hand.
With frost in his voice and eyes, Jared stood and stared at Paul. “I’ll give you two options, Andrew.”
“T–tell me. What do you want? I’ll do it!” Paul stuttered, his eyes wide with fear. “Anything goes as long as you let me live, right?”
He glanced at Jared with tearful, pleading eyes, his body quivering like a beggar’s.
“You have three days to sign this contract, or I will force you into bankruptcy and leave you penniless,” Jared threatened.
Then and there, Paul’s face was dejected and lifeless, and his hopes were destroyed as the icy words echoed throughout the room, and he dropped to the floor.
Jared turned away, his face a mask of steely purpose, as he strode towards the office door with his long, emotionless legs.
Moments later, Paul’s assistant got a call and collapsed to his knees in fear, staring at Jared with a white face and shaking hands.
Something was off, and Jared could tell. His black eyes stared at Paul’s aide, penetrating and demanding answers.
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Just then, Paul’s assistant begged for forgiveness tremblingly, “Sir, please don’t kill me! I have nothing to do with this! He was the one-” He pointed to Paul and stated, “It was Mr. Andrew, Sir! He gave me orders to have Miss Julia kidnapped.
The assistant’s remarks hit Jared like thunder, and he stormed over to confront her wrathfully. He lifted him by the collar and spoke in a menacing whisper. “Speak! What’s going on?”
Quaking with fear, the assistant replied, “Mr. Andrew has always wanted to have her. Yesterday, he was insulted by Miss Julia. So he told me to locate professional kidnappers who would quietly whisk her away to an abandoned property in the suburbs, where she would be tortured to death.” His voice cracked with shock, and his words came quickly.
Fearing for his life, the assistant whispered his confession and pointed to the open package on the table. “Mr. Andrew ordered me to prepare for those things!”
Jared looked where the assistant was pointing and realized he had noticed it previously but hadn’t given it any thought. He had not counted on Paul arranging such cruel treatment for Julia. It hit Jared like a ton of bricks when he realized it. Anger spread across his face. Jared tossed the assistant out and went over to Paul, kicking him hard.
“Aghh! Fuck!” Paul let out a squealing fit for a pig, sending his rotund frame flying and crashing into the office desk, knocking the box off and to the floor. The room had total anarchy, and the air reeked of fear and betrayal.
Jared stifled his rage and dialed Julia’s phone hastily, his hands trembling slightly. Luckily, the call went through in a matter of seconds.
“Hello?” The woman’s soothing voice was like a balm on Jared’s raw nerves as his tense mood subsided.
When he finally asked, “How are you? Are you okay?” he sounded concerned.
“Hmm?” Julia made a bewildered sound. “What the heck happened?”
Jared then explained the situation to Julia with urgency in his voice. While listening, Julia looked around warily as she clutched Maddie’s hand for protection. She was well, but Maddie was pregnant with triplets and couldn’t afford complications.
“Where are you now? I’ll be right over,” Jared muttered, hurrying to the office door, his mind racing with worry.
He hesitated at the door, returning his gaze to the disheveled Paul, his eyes filled with homicidal intent, his speech icy and unfeeling. “Use all of those tools on him all at once!”
With that, Jared hurriedly entered the elevator and approached Julia.
“That’s it! It’s over! I’m done!” Paul sank to the floor, his face pale and his voice hardly audible.
Meanwhile, a silver vehicle pulled over while Jared was driving. Curious, he looked at the van over his window. Just before Jared decided to end the call, he noticed six men emerge from the van, approaching him threateningly.
