Escape from Mr. Whitman (Emma and Theodore) novel Chapter 409

Jared sat in his usual seat at the head of the boardroom table.

The news about Theodore was confirmed. Hanley himself had gone to the hospital and seen it with his own eyes.

The other board members were deeply concerned. "How is Mr. Whitman?" they asked.

"He's still in the hospital. The doctors don't know when, or if, he'll wake up," Hanley said, wringing his hands. "But we have several urgent matters that require his approval, a few major contracts that need his signature. What are we going to do?"

Only Jared knew the truth. There was no waking up from that poison. The best-case scenario was brain death.

"Let's just wait a few days," Jared said calmly. "If Mr. Whitman doesn't regain consciousness, the board can decide on our next steps together."

Hanley sighed. It seemed to be their only option. Theodore had no children, no designated heir.

"In the meantime," Jared continued, "there are some contractual obligations we need to fulfill. As VPs, we should probably go ahead and sign off on them. Several of our outsourcing partners are waiting on their payments. They're small companies; we can't just leave them hanging."

"Absolutely not," Hanley immediately objected. "Any payment going out requires Theo's final signature. We can't bypass that."

Jared fought to keep his composure. "But he can't sign right now, can he?"

"We just agreed to wait a few days! Theo is in the hospital. We can't just act like he's already gone!"

Jared and Hanley began to argue, their voices rising until Jared was openly calling him "rigid," "stubborn," and "stupid."

One of the other board members chimed in. "Mr. Jared, with Mr. Whitman in this condition, why are you in such a hurry to pay these vendors instead of focusing on his well-being?"

He was on his way to meet Melvin Laurent, who would then take him to a luncheon and press conference hosted by the Rossi Corporation. With Larson Bennett and Theodore out of the picture, he wondered if Rossi's plans for Cresthaven would change.

An icy resolve settled over him. Whether they were going to change or not, he would *make* them change.

But regardless of what Rossi decided to do, today was about cementing his relationship with Melvin. That rich kid was his ticket to the big leagues. Melvin had told him that Rossi Corp valued talent. Young Rossi himself only had a problem with Theodore; he was open to working with anyone else who was truly capable.

Jared scoffed. He didn't need Rossi's acceptance anymore. In fact, with its leader incapacitated, could Rossi Corp even handle today's press conference? Could they still establish a foothold in Cresthaven?

He felt a surge of malicious glee. He'd originally planned on bringing Hanley along for the ride, but Hanley's recent attitude had soured him.

With these thoughts swirling in his mind, he arrived at the exclusive club where the event was being held. He presented his invitation and was shown inside. There, he saw Melvin Laurent in a quiet conversation with Latham Fairchild, the CEO of Rossi Corp.