Catherine's concerns were completely justified. While Lemuel had a tragic background, their caution had to outweigh their pity.
"Boss, I should have been more careful!" Aaron said, a sudden realization hitting him. "I should have told Catherine to stick him in Golden Horizon Enterprises."
Lance's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Golden Horizon?"
"When I processed his onboarding this morning, he casually mentioned that he preferred SilverLeaf over Golden Horizon. I pushed a little and found out that when he asked Catherine for a job, he said he'd be fine at either company."
A suffocating silence slammed down on the car.
The atmosphere grew impossibly heavy, the temperature around Lance plunging. Whatever he was thinking, his eyes turned into bottomless, pitch-black voids.
SilverLeaf. Lance was coming into the office today specifically to deal with Ivan.
Ingram had been completely purged from the board, and since Ivan was his loyal lackey, he had to go, too.
Ivan had been waiting at the front entrance for quite a while. The second he spotted Lance's car pulling up, he scrambled over to open the door.
"Mr. James."
Lance stepped out, casually adjusting his suit jacket. His predatory gaze swept over Ivan, making the manager feel as though a razor-sharp blade had just been dragged down his spine.
"Sir, I have some operational restructuring I'd like to discuss with you."
Lance gave a clipped nod and strode toward his private elevator, leaving Ivan scrambling to keep up.
As they stepped into the confined space, the intimidating, ruthless aura rolling off Lance intensified.
Ivan's heart pounded frantically against his ribs.
Minutes later, they were in the CEO's office.
Lance sat behind his massive desk, eyeing Ivan with complete indifference. "Get to the point, Ivan."
"It's about the municipal contract I pushed for," Ivan stammered. "Even though it brought some great PR to the company, we've only bled money on the margins. I feel incredibly guilty and responsible for the loss. I think... I think it's best if I resign from my position as the Project Department Manager."
He was playing a strategic retreat. It was hard to tell if he actually knew his place, or if he was simply testing Lance's boundaries.

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