Ferguson's Win

Queenie finally stopped. She smacked the pliers against my cheek. "This is a little lesson, Christina. I can kill you like an insect anytime I want to. Don't try to take Anthony away from me. You'll never win."

She fell into Anthony's arms and left the room together. I was imprisoned, waiting for death to come to me.

The pain would not stop undulating across my body. Every time I breathe, needles would prick my lungs, and ants would bite every inch of my skin.

Just when despair was about to eat me whole, someone opened the door very carefully. There was only an infinitesimal crack.

"I'll get you out of there, Christina."

It was Leslie, one of my subordinates. He was very gentle with me, yet he still touched my wounds by accident. I grunted.

"Was that your wound? I'm really sorry, Christina."

I gritted my teeth and shook my head. "It's nothing. Just get me out of here."

Leslie nodded and slowly made his way to the company's entrance. The moment we came out, we were met with a row of cars. Liam came up to me right away. "What happened to you, Christina?"

I squeezed a smile. "It's nothing I can't handle."

We got into the car. Liam noticed my messed-up hands, and he cried. Gently, he cleaned my wounds and put balm on them. Then he bandaged them up.

Quietly, I looked at him. "I will get the Prosper Co. deal next month, Liam."

…

A month went by. It was the bid. Everyone knew that anyone who could snag the Prosper Co. deal meant they could become the top family in Riveropolis.

Liam and I went into the hall, and we ran into Anthony and Queenie.

Anthony looked at me icily. "Well, well, well, if it isn't Christina. Look at you, looking like a loser. Only an idiot like Liam would take you in."

Queenie, as always, played along. "Yeah. Your proposal is worthless. You're only going to embarrass yourself. I'm friends with Prosper's CEO. He respects me. Don't even try to pull anything. You're never going to win."

Liam frowned. Solemnly, he said, "It's too early to count your chickens."

Anthony scoffed. He did not see Liam as a serious competitor. "You think anyone here's a match for me? You think you are? Wake up. Your family's never won against mine. Not even once."

The emcee took to the stage and opened up the envelope he was holding. The noises died down. Silence took over. Everyone's eyes turned to the stage.

"After stringent evaluation and shortlisting, the company that will take the Prosper Co. deal is…" A momentary pause later, he announced, "Ferguson Group!"

The smile on Anthony's face froze.