Chapter 1297 Declan's Arrival
Robert's face was all poker, but inside, he was doing a happy dance.
Since he got locked up, Cassie's been climbing the social ladder. He thought he'd be stuck looking up to his ex-daughter forever, but turns out, the universe threw him a bone.
He scored the Hernandez Group's shares.
Never in a million years did he think this day would come.
Sure, Olivia was his flesh and blood, but he wasn't too torn up about it now.
Cassie was sucking up to him, but it was obvious she just wanted something from him.
Too bad for her, he wasn't giving her squat.
"I'll take this son-in-law, but you? You're no daughter of mine. Beat it," Robert spat out.
David chimed in, "Cassie, Dad's pretty pissed you ditched me. If you come back, he might let it slide."
"You're so gross, she wouldn't go back to you," Joseph, who'd been quiet, now stepped up next to Cassie.
This was only the second time Joseph had seen David, and he already couldn't stand him.
David shot Joseph a frosty look. The guy standing in front of him was annoyingly good-looking.
Something David could never claim.
His face tightened, and he sneered, "Mr. Hernandez, you showed up to the meeting, but do you even get what we're talking about?"
"I'm not deaf," Joseph shot back, "But I'm curious, do you have shares, or are you a director of the Hernandez Group? Otherwise, what gives you the right to be here?"
Cassie raised an eyebrow. Who said Joseph was dumb before?
Joseph was growing at warp speed.
He used to be the richest dude in Madison, after all.
David's face got serious, "Today, I'm here as Mr. Robert Brooks' rep to back him up. All the paperwork's been handed over to Mr. Johansson."
"That's right," Lars nodded with a grin, "Mr. Hernandez, don't give Mr. Brooks a hard time, it's his first day."
"Give him a hard time?" Joseph's eyes turned icy, "I'm just following company rules. How was I supposed to know he handled stuff on the down-low? As the company president, you should've told the board. Have you said anything since we walked in? If you don't know how to talk, zip it."
Lars was fuming. He'd been in the game for years, and no one had ever dared to call him out like this.
Even Cassie had only thrown shade behind his back.
Joseph pressed on, "Did I say anything wrong? Remember your place. You're not a shareholder. The company pays you to manage, not to mess things up. But look at you, always firing and replacing people. Even the receptionist and security at the door are new because of you. What, you trying to make this your own little kingdom?"
Joseph's tone was ice-cold, and his eyes were blazing with authority.
Even a guy like Lars was left speechless for a moment.
He hadn't really crossed paths with Joseph before 'cause Olivia was running the show back then. Olivia had a tight grip on seventy percent of the Hernandez Group's shares and strutted in like she owned the place, then booted out Joseph's loyal crew.
At first, Lars was on edge, but he soon found out Joseph had turned into a total idiot.
He couldn't have been happier, so he swapped out the company's old guard with his own cronies. Now, the Hernandez Group was pretty much his playground.
But who would've guessed Joseph would come back swinging?
This wasn't something a fool would pull off.
"Mr. Hernandez, you got it twisted. I canned those folks 'cause they were slacking. Don't give me grief just 'cause the receptionist and security gave you a hard time today. I'll fire them right now."
Lars was hinting that Joseph was just being a pain.
Robert quickly jumped in, "The receptionist and security are new. It's normal they didn't recognize you. I think Mr. Johansson is doing a great job."
"What's so great about it?" Joseph shot back.
Robert felt a chill run down his spine.
He didn't know what was so great either; it was his first day here.
He looked to David, who smiled and said, "Mr. Johansson stabilized the company in just a few days, which is impressive. The Hernandez Group was a mess before, but now it's running smoothly, and everyone's on the same page. Not everyone can pull that off."
Joseph sneered, "Swapping everyone with his own people, of course, they're united. As a director, I wanna see real profits and what his crew has done in tech, development, sales, and resources."
Lars looked to David for backup.
David gave Robert a nod, and Robert snapped, "Mr. Johansson's only been here a few days. It takes time. Plus, you took the lab's data with you, stalling tech and development. That's on you. For the company's future, you should hand over the data so everyone can use it and push the Hernandez Group forward."
Cassie grinned, "Dad, that's a bit much. The Hernandez family only holds thirty percent of the shares, and all the Hernandez folks have been booted. You still want him to hand over his tech data? Dream on. I say, cough up twenty percent of the company's shares, and we might think about it. After all, Olivia's dead, right? That's a silver lining; it's an opportunity."
"You're nuts," Robert fumed. Cassie actually said Olivia's death was a good thing. "Even if she's dead, the shares won't go to the Hernandez family."
"I didn't say give them to us. It's about a fair trade. But her shares might not end up with you," Cassie said with a smirk.
"If not me, then who?" Robert scoffed.
"Olivia snagged the Hernandez Group's shares without spending a dime."
The office door suddenly flew open.
Declan, rocking black pants and a black t-shirt, stormed in with his assistant and lawyer.
His six-foot-six frame and tough-guy vibe made the room feel like a freezer.
Even David felt a shiver of fear.
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