Chapter 6 Chapter 6

SHANE

Alec Thorpe, the owner of the media that I accepted to have the interview, stood before the building, a few staff behind him, as Timothy pulled the car to a halt.

Jace was sitting beside me in the car. I had told him to come.

I reached out to open the door, but he stopped me.

“Wait!”

I turned, then turned to him, eyes narrowing at him, “What?”

“Let me open the door for you.” He offered.

I glared at him. “I'm not fuckin handicapped, Jace. I can open a door myself.”

Then I pushed the door open and climbed down. Alec Thorpe stepped forward, a broad smile of servility plastered across his face.

“Mr Blackwood, it's such a great pleasure to have you here.” He said, voice dripping with sweet politeness.

Alec Thorpe is one of the influential men in this city, with dirty secrets that I know of. Yeah, I have him in the paws of my hands, just like the others.

So, here he is, doing everything he can to please me. What a pathetic little creature.

“Let's make this quick.” I said, brushing past him into the building.

Thorpe kept making small talk as we crossed the lobby to the elevator. He, Jace and I alone rode the elevator to the top floor.

The room I was to have the interview in was already set… cameras, mic, ring lights, a bottle of water on the table, and what have you, with the crew on standby.

“We tried our best not to include any sensitive questions.” Thorpe said carefully, “But anyone you do not like, you can say to skip, and we will.”

I grunted without a response. Jace opened the door for me, and I walked in.

The brunette sitting in one of the two chairs rose to her feet quickly, offering me her professional smile, which I'm sure she has practiced about a thousand times.

“Mr Blackwood. H-hi.” She greeted cheerfully, then stretched out her hand for a handshake. The uneasiness in her eyes was too sweet to miss. “I'm Emily Richards. Thank you for agreeing to this.”

I ignored her hand and walked past her, then sat down in the chair across from hers. “Let's proceed, shall we?”

Her hand slowly dropped to her side, fazed. The atmosphere in the room thickened. She flicked her gaze over to Thorpe standing by the doorway, as though searching for some kind of encouragement or confidence boost.

Thorpe smiled at her and jerked her thumbs at her. She took a deep breath and flicked her hair back before turning and shooting me the same professional, composed smile.

“Well, of course.” She said in a forcefully energetic tone.

She returned to her seat across from me and settled down. She reached out and picked up the tablet from the table, then began to scroll.

A man to the side raised a hand. “We’ll be rolling in ten.”

I relaxed back in my seat and let out a soft sigh. Richards kept scrolling through the tablet, memorizing her questions. Every now and then, she would shoot me a furtive glance, then wipe her sweat with her handkerchief.

I relished her uneasiness.

“Ready?” The cameraman called.

“Yes,” Richards replied quickly, then dropped back the tablet and glanced up at me.

I held her gaze.

Then the red lights blinked on.

“Hi, everyone, this is Emily Richards,” She began, voice dripping with professional, practiced pleasantness, “Today, we have the CEO of Blackwood Enterprises with us, Shane Blackwood with us. You have probably heard of him. You probably haven't. Everyone welcome, Shane Blackwood.”

The camera shifted to me.

I fucking hate this.

I didn't smile. I just glared into the camera until the cameraman got uncomfortable and turned the camera back to Richards.

“So, Mr Blackwood, it's been four years now since you took over your family's company.” She said, “And today, it’s one of the top three firms in the whole of the West Coast. Everyone wants to know the same thing… how?”

I didn't answer right away. I let my silence unnerve everyone in the room for a moment, just for the fun of it, relishing the look on their faces.

“I removed what didn’t work.” I finally spoke.

The smile on her face remained stiff. “Well, that sounds… simple.”

I let my lips curl up a little bit. “That’s because it is.”

Her smile faltered, then she adjusted in her seat. “Um… okay. And the people you removed?”

“Replaceable.”

I didn't hesitate. I didn't emphasize.

I just stated the fact.

She was trying as much as she could to hide the displeasure and uneasiness. Oh, and it was so much fun watching her try.

“You’ve declined every interview request since taking over.” She continued. “Why agree now?”

Because I needed to be seen.

By him.

That little cunt.

I tilted my head slightly. “Timing.”

She waited, expecting more, but didn't get any.

She shifted again in her seat, then cleared her throat, before continuing, tone careful, “Some have described your leadership style as… well… extreme. High turnover, aggressive restructuring, uncompromising decisions. How do you respond to that?”

“I get results.”

Her lips parted slightly, then she closed them and continued.

“And your employees?” She queried. “How would you describe your relationship with them?”

My thigh chose this moment to feel stiff and tight. I ignored it. “They perform.”

“And if they don’t?”

“They’re replaced.” I deadpanned, “With immediate effect.”

“Personal question this time, Mr. Blackwood.” She said calmly, “Are you still married to Ms Alicia Banks?”

I clenched my jaw. “Sorry?”

She blinked several times, then broke eye contact. “We can skip it if you don't want to answer.”

“No, I want to understand first why you would ask me that,” I said, voice low and suddenly sweet. “It hasn't even been a year since my marriage. Do you think something happened between my wife and me?”

She swallowed hard. “Well, no. But… we did get an anonymous tip that you and Ms Banks had a huge fight just a few days after your wedding, leading to your separation.”

This “anonymous tip” clearly isn't Alicia or any of her family members. They know better than to blabber.

So, one of the staff blabbed, or all of them, despite my explicit warning.

Interesting.

“I'd like to skip.”

“Um… okay, sure.”

She asked about five more questions before Thorpe signalled to her to wrap it up.

“Well, that'd be all, everyone. Thank you, Mr Blackwood, for joining us today.”

As I stepped out of the room, Thorpe appeared and started mumbling words of servility, apologizing for the personal question Richards asked.

I simply ignored him and stepped into the elevator, with Jace beside me. He thumbed the ground floor, and the elevator started to move.

“When will it be uploaded?” I asked.

“They’ll probably be through with the editing before noon and upload it then.” Jace answered.

I grunted.

This’d better work.