Uneasy Intervention

"We don't need to penetrate the large loose market and compete with the big fish. What we need there is to institute a market that is not yet saturated; be the pioneer and expand the scope of our products. I'll be flying back real soon to check the progress of the research and attend the launch of the new product line."

Everything was all set. Ian had his plan sought and his time organized. He just needed the old man's approval to continue his goal. After all, Damien Calloway owned a considerable percentage of the company's shares after manipulating Robert to sign the agreement as part of their partnership back in the day.

Regardless, Ian didn't blame his father for his desperate decision, knowing how little he knew about dealing with a man like Damien Calloway.

Nonetheless, it wouldn't change the impending risk that would come in the later years. As such, when Ian inherited his company after his brother's death, Damien Calloway now controlled forty percent of the entire Harrison company, making him important and having the largest share among the stockholders.

If Ian let his guard down, Damien could steal the company from him—the legacy that his father built for generations to come. Ian couldn't let Damien do that.

"I'll give you five months, Ian. If you can't give the board a remarkable result after that, then that branch will have to be sold, along with your position. Don't let your father down." Damien dropped his empty glass on the mahogany desk and patted his shoulders.

Ian gritted his teeth while the old man passed through him. "I don't break my words, Damien. Even my father knows that." He then walked out of Damien's office space and returned to his quarters. Damien was left alone inside his place, his fist clenching the crumpled documents. Grabbing his phone from the glass desk, he dialed a number. "The kid is too stubborn like his brother. He won't stop caring about the branch. Make sure he's not following the trail, alright?"

He stood from his swivel chair and turned back to look at the breathtaking view. Taking a deep breath, Damien muttered, "Bury all the evidence you could find. I don't care how you do it, just make it gone. Don't let him find out."

After the call ended, he slid his phone inside his pocket and fled out in a rage.

…

Afternoon came in a flash at the school, and Marzia barely noticed it was dismissal time. Parents were already by the school gate to pick up their kids. Most of the students were excited to get out to take a break from the stressful drawbacks of being a student. After all, it was a dreadful week for them since the Math event was on board to rack their brains with numbers and problems. Along with Cassandra, Marzia was walking back to the faculty room to finish some of her to-do lists. Since exams were already around the corner, she has been preparing questions for the upcoming periodicals. Cassandra, on the other hand, was swamped with work as she was the organizer of the said event; checking and monitoring everything from the games up to the prizes are all up her alley. "I need a full bottle of wine once this is over," Cassandra grumbled while stretching out her back from the stiffness caused by all this ruckus.

"Same. All I ever do after work is slump my head on my pillow and sleep," Marzia commented. Her work as a teacher and her sideline as Chan's tutor were honestly quite taxing to her. Nevertheless, she understood she had to cut to the grain to be able to pay the bills. Although, she still plans on picking up more kids to tutor for some extra cash.

Cassandra twisted to face her and chuckled. "Tell me about it. Not to mention you have to deal with those kids."

Marzia gripped the documents tightly in her hands. "Indeed!" she chortled.

Then, they turned to the left corridor of the hallway and were greeted with a surprise. A parent was screaming near the entrance of the school gate at one of the very young students. Because of this, the two of them checked it out and were flabbergasted by what they had witnessed.

"You importunate brat! How dare you do this to my son?! Look what you did!" the woman bellowed while tightly holding her son, who had a bruise on his cheeks. "Where are your parents? I want to talk to them!"

"What do you think happened here?" Cassandra leaned toward Marzia and whispered.

Marzia could only reply with a shrug while she assessed the situation. Students surrounded them while watching the scene between the blares of the mother and Chan. Upon considering that, Cassandra scattered the crowd around the two parties, ordering the kids and other spectators to go back to their respective places.

"There's nothing to snoop around. Move away, everyone, and please don't block the gate," Cassandra ordered in a calm and collective manner. After doing that, she called the guard for assistance.

Meanwhile, Chan bowed his head, muted and silent. He lifted his hand to his face and rubbed his eyes. Marzia noticed him crying right away, and she didn't hesitate to intervene between them. "Is there a problem here, ma'am?"

The heated mother glowered at Marzia as though she wanted to bury her alive.

"Is there a problem? Are you goddamn serious?" The mother shot Marzia a glare, hauling her child closer to Marzia so that she could see the swelling bruise on his cheeks. "That brat hit my son! Look at what he did to my poor baby's face! Kids like him should not be allowed here!"

Marzia calmly took a step forward, shielding Chan from the woman's hysterics. She raised her arms to appease the woman, who seemed to be getting angrier by the second. "I apologize for what happened, ma'am. I can assure you that I will talk this out with Chan. We can assist you to the clinic right now so your son's bruises are tended to."

Marzia then looked at Cassandra and asked her to help the mother and the kid go to the clinic before something drastic happened. The math teacher got her signal pretty quickly, and she rushed to the mother's side. "Why don't we let his bruise be treated first by our resident nurse, Mrs. Rochester? Then we can talk this over with our principal once everything settles down."

The mother gave her a disdainful expression. She pushed Cassandra's hand away from her shoulders and said, "I can treat my child's bruise better! What I need you to do is to give that brat an expulsion!" The woman pointed at Chan, who was hiding behind Marzia.

Marzia sighed. She gently pulled Chan away from the woman. "We can't do it, Mrs. Rochester. However, we can let you talk with our guidance councilor—"

Mrs. Rochester cut her off and yelled, "That's not what I need! I want that kid to be out of here immediately! Why are you tolerating that brat, anyway?! He should be punished for his rude behavior and ill-mannered actions! Is this really how you teach our kids? Because if it is, then I won't hesitate to move my son to another school!"

Cassandra chimed in, explaining the situation thoroughly, "Mrs. Rochester, we understand your concern about your son, Luis. And we are grateful for your trust in us to help you teach your kids not only in academics but in personal aspects as well. However, we also have rules and guidelines here that must be obeyed and followed before we make rash decisions. For now, what we can do is treat Luis' bruise first and meet with the guidance counselor and principal about this important matter."

Despite this, Mrs. Rochester was closed-eared. "This is the second time my son has become one of that monster's victims! He's always bullying Luis! I don't want to talk this out anymore! I want that he-devil to be expelled!"

"Please ma'am. Let's talk—" Cassandra was about to respond politely, but she was suddenly cut off when she heard and felt a force hitting her left cheek.

Marzia was surprised when Mrs. Rochester slapped her friend. She became more livid about the woman's treatment of them until she couldn't bear her temper anymore.

"You're scaring the poor kid to death because of a situation that resulted in Luis's mistakes too! If you must know, Mrs. Rochester, it is not entirely Chan's fault, as Luis also bullies Chan in and out of the class! Should you want to continue this to the guidance office and the principal, then I can attest that your son is not at all just a victim of this. Chan wouldn't punch him if Luis didn't bully him!" Marzia reasoned out.