The CEO and the Country Wildflower chapter 43

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The CEO and the Country Wildflower
Chapter 43: The Traitor’s Shadow & A Marriage of Convenience


The screens in York Group’s boardroom flickered ominously before cutting to black, plunging the room into stunned silence. Leo Brown’s smug grin had vanished along with the feed, but his taunting words still echoed in the air. "You’ll never see it coming, York." Lucas’s jaw tightened, his migraine threatening to resurface despite Emelly standing mere inches away. He turned to her, his voice low but razor-sharp. "You shouldn’t be here." Emelly crossed her arms, undeterred. "And let you handle this alone? Please. You’d still be glaring at spreadsheets while Leo sabotages your servers."


A muscle twitched in Lucas’s cheek. He hated that she was right. David, ever the voice of reason, stepped forward. "Sir, we need damage control. The live feed was broadcasted internally—employees are panicking."


Before Lucas could respond, Tony burst into the room, his usually cheerful face grim. "IT’s locked out. Leo’s malware is spreading. If we don’t stop it, every client file could be wiped." Emelly’s eyes lit up. "Give me ten minutes." Lucas scoffed. "You’re not IT." "No, but I memorized the entire system architecture last month when you accidentally left the blueprints in my stack of paperwork." She smirked. "Remember? The ‘tedious filing’ you assigned to punish me for replacing your coffee with decaf?" A reluctant flicker of admiration crossed Lucas’s face before he schooled his expression. "Fine. But if you make it worse—" "—You’ll fire me? Bold threat, considering I quit three times this week." She winked and dashed off, Tony hot on her heels. As they worked, Lucas’s phone buzzed.


Bruno’s name flashed on the screen. He stepped into the hallway, bracing for another crisis. Bruno’s voice was uncharacteristically strained. "Lucas. We need to talk. It’s about Serritary." --- Meanwhile: The Jonshon Estate Serritary Jonshon paced her gilded bedroom, her silk robe flaring dramatically with every turn. "I refuse to marry some… some stranger to fix Father’s gambling debts!" Her mother sighed. "Bruno Halthorn is hardly a stranger. His family’s shipping empire could save ours. And he’s agreed to the arrangement." "Of course he did," Serritary muttered. "Men like him always do." The door swung open, and Bruno strode in, his tailored suit doing little to soften his scowl. "Lovely to see you too, future wife." Serritary’s eyes narrowed. "Do you always barge into ladies’ bedrooms unannounced?" "Only when they’re my problem." He tossed a contract onto her vanity. "Sign it. We marry tomorrow. No fuss, no theatrics."


She snatched the paper, scanning it with a scoff. "‘Mutual respect, separate bedrooms, no emotional entanglements’? How romantic." Bruno leaned in, his voice dropping. "Romance is a luxury neither of us can afford. Your family’s drowning, and mine needs political allies. This is business." Their eyes locked—a clash of stubborn wills. Then, to his shock, Serritary smirked. "Fine. But if we’re doing this, we’re doing it my way." --- Back at York Group Emelly’s fingers flew across the keyboard, lines of code reflecting in her determined gaze. Tony watched in awe. "How are you bypassing the encryption?" "Leo reused his old algorithm from Brown Group’s internship program." She rolled her eyes. "Honestly, for a villain, he’s lazy." The screens suddenly flared back to life.


A single file appeared—the traitor’s name highlighted in red. Linda Crow. Lucas’s blood ran cold. His trusted assistant. Emelly spun in her chair. "She’s been leaking data for months. Probably why Leo knew about your migraine weakness—" A deafening crash cut her off. The lights died. Then, a single text lit up Lucas’s phone from an unknown number: "You found the pawn. But the king’s still on the board. Tick-tock, York."