Family Meeting
The aroma of freshly brewed coffee and warm croissants filled the air, but his mind was elsewhere, still churning with the implications of his recent discovery.
The door swung open, and Victor strode in, his commanding presence filling the room instantly.
Victoria followed close behind, her posture rigid and her eyes scanning Brandon with barely concealed concern.
"How are you feeling, son?"
Victor's voice was gruff but tinged with worry.
Brandon opened his mouth to respond, but Victoria cut in before he could utter a word.
"Oh, stop coddling him, Dad," she said, rolling her eyes.
"He's not a baby anymore."
She turned her piercing gaze on Brandon, her arms crossed over her chest.
"I hope whatever you've dragged us here for is worth my time. I had to reschedule three meetings for this little family gathering."
Brandon couldn't help but notice the slight tremor in her voice, betraying the concern she was trying so hard to mask with irritation.
He knew his sister well enough to recognize when she was truly worried.
"I assure you, it's important," Brandon said, his voice steady despite the gravity of what he was about to share.
Brandon watched as his father nodded thoughtfully.
"You're right," Victor said, his voice carrying the weight of authority.
"This is a family matter. We should have Bailey here too. It's high time you twins start getting more involved in the family empire."
He turned to Victoria.
"Would you mind fetching your sister?"
Victoria's eyebrows shot up, but she nodded curtly and left the room.
A few minutes later, the door opened again.
Victoria reappeared, pushing Bailey in a wheelchair. Brandon's heart clenched at the sight of his twin sister looking so frail.
"B Are you okay?" he asked, concern etched across his face.
Bailey looked pale and weak, but her smile was as bright as ever.
"I'm fine, B. Just some minor injuries. Nothing a bit more rest won't fix."
Victoria wheeled Bailey next to Brandon's bed, then bent down and wrapped her arms around her younger sister in a gentle hug.
"Vic, where's my hug?" Brandon asked, opening his arms with a playful pout.
Victoria straightened up and shot him a sidelong glance.
"Time is money, little brother. Spill it. What's so important that you've dragged us all here?"
Brandon took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping across his family members' faces.
He began to share his discoveries, his voice steady and clear.
"I've noticed some alarming trends in the economy. Housing prices have skyrocketed, consumer debt levels are at an all-time high, and there's increased volatility and irrational exuberance in the stock market."
Victoria nodded, a knowing look in her eyes.
The Blackstones were heavily invested in real estate, after all.
"And what does that have to do with this?" she asked, her tone sharp but curious.
Brandon leaned forward slightly, wincing at the movement.
"And have you noticed a proliferation of complex financial products in the recent years? Are there signs that banks are highly leveraged?"
Victor's brow furrowed, his expression turning serious as he pondered the question.
"That might be true, but what does all this have to do with your assassination attempt?"
"Mom always says there's more than meets the eye,"
Brandon replied, his voice low and intense.
"The economic signs, the manipulation of popular culture and media to encourage reckless spending... What would happen to our family's empire if the housing and stock market bubbles were intentionally inflated to unsustainable levels and then abruptly popped?"
Victoria's eyes widened, and she murmured,
"The markets will crash, and the world would face one of the greatest recessions in modern history."
She swung her head to face Victor, her voice dropping even lower.
"Real estate will be worthless, oil and gas prices will plummet."
"Exactly," Brandon agreed, nodding grimly.
"Whether or not we'd be able to react appropriately to salvage the damage done to us is one thing, but our family losing both Bailey and me in such stressful times would be the nail in the coffin. Not to mention Gordon's effect on the Vanguards."
A tense silence fell over the room as Brandon's words hung in the air. He watched his family's faces, each lost in their own thoughts.
Annie's brow furrowed, her eyes distant as she processed the implications of Brandon's theory. Victor's jaw clenched, his hands balling into fists at his sides. Victoria paced the room, her heels clicking softly on the hardwood floor as she muttered calculations under her breath.
But it was Bailey's reaction that caught Brandon's attention.
His twin sister tilted her head, her gaze fixed on him with an intensity that made him shift uncomfortably in his bed.
There was curiosity in her eyes, mixed with something else he couldn't quite place.
'Is B back? Or has he been acting this entire time? Connecting an assassination attempt to a potential global crisis when he supposedly has amnesia…?'
Bailey's eyes narrowed slightly, and Brandon felt a twinge of unease.
The silence stretched on, broken only by the soft beeping of medical equipment and Victoria's muted footsteps.
Victor broke the tense silence, his deep voice filling the room.
"While your analysis might seem a bit far-fetched, son, I must admit there's some merit to it."
He stroked his chin thoughtfully, his eyes narrowing as he considered the implications.
"Victoria and I will dig deeper into this right away. We'll have another meeting tomorrow to discuss our findings."
Brandon nodded, relief washing over him.
He hadn't been sure how his family would react to his theory, but his father's willingness to investigate further was encouraging enough for now.
Before anyone else could speak, Annie's voice cut through the air, sharp and commanding.
"And what of NOA?" she demanded, her eyes flashing with a fierce intensity.
"Do they not owe us an explanation? Our children were attacked on their grounds. This is unacceptable."
Brandon watched as his mother's demeanor shifted, revealing the domineering side she usually kept hidden beneath her nurturing exterior.
Her jaw was set, her posture rigid as she stared down Victor, waiting for a response.
Victor met Annie's gaze, his expression unreadable.
After a moment, he replied evenly,
"We'll discuss this tomorrow, darling. All of it."