Prologue Chapter 1: Family Affairs

Ian Lee sat comfortably at the back seat of his car. He had long ago stopped paying attention to the passing scenery as his driver continued along the road. It was mid-summer and the weather outside was beautiful. Other men and women his age were busy falling in love and planning for marriages, but Ian did not think about these things at all. Instead of a summer romance, Ian's eyes were glued to the tablet in his hands. He was monitoring the stock market conditions for a signal to aggressively go ahead with his plan. Either way he would do what he needed to do, but if the market conditions reacted the way he predicted, it would greatly benefit his company.

Ian had just taken over his family's business. Although he had been the vice president since he was twenty, it was only now that his father trusted him enough to hand him everything. Within the last few months, Ian made changes that angered many people, but no one dared to confront him directly and not just because he was the company's head.

The Lee family was one of the most well-known and influential families in Pan Country. Ian's first cousin was the current president and they had countless relatives in other branches of government. The Lee family network was so large that many people believed that the Lee family controlled the law and thus, not many dared to openly go against them. The Lee family always disputed the rumors as nonsense, but it was not entirely untrue.

Ian had just ousted a prominent figure within his company for his inside dealings. While the man was not a member of the Lee family, it was revealed to Ian that he; Mr. Walsh, had been using the Lee name to gain favor all over the country. Mr. Walsh claimed that he had a direct relationship with Ian and that Ian would always follow his advice. While this was somewhat true, it was a misrepresentation of the facts.

When Ian first joined the company, he was only 16 years old. Many prominent members of the company secretly wished for him to fail at taking over the family business, simply because they found him rude and arrogant. However, Mr. Walsh was always kind to Ian. He had a son who was three years older than Ian, but Ian had twice the responsibility. While Mr. Walsh's son, Zane, was out with his friends and enjoying his youth, Ian was home schooled at an accelerated pace and forced to enter the business world at an early age. He took pity on Ian and so he helped teach him the ins and outs of the business as well as the good and the bad. Fortunately, there was better than bad.

Mr. Walsh did not hold his tongue in front of Ian, and for that Ian respected him greatly. Eventually, Ian was introduced to Zane and the two became friends as they learned the ropes within the company. Zane had studied marketing in school and was already considered a marketing expert, while Ian's studies focused on strategy. Because he was homeschooled, Ian did not have much experience with socializing, but Zane was a master at it. The two were a very complementary pair and were often together.

Given their friendly relationship it was completely understood that, when Mr. Walsh would casually mention investing in a small business or company, Ian would trust his judgment and allow Mr. Walsh to handle the investments himself. The turnaround was always good, and Ian had no cause for concern. This was not the case for Zane.

Because Ian had recently taken over, Zane did not want to cause any trouble within the company, but he constantly reminded Ian that his father was not the same man he used to be. Naturally, this caused Ian to keep his guard up. He knew that Zane and his father had fallen out over the last few years and no longer had a good relationship but because Zane could easily be considered his best friend, he also knew that he would not speak ill of his father if it were untrue. He could also tell that Zane was holding something back, but he did not want to pry.

Mr. Walsh had recently divorced Zane's mother but even before then, he had begun running around with women young enough to be his daughter. Pan country was still a patriarchal place and although Ms. Walsh was cast out due to no fault of her own, many people looked down on her and she was having a grim time adjusting to her new life as a divorcee.

Fortunately, Zane was not like other men in the country. So, before his mother was formally removed from the household, he had already found his own place. Mrs. Walsh's belongings had not even been fully packed before her son came and moved her into his home. His home, a house he had bought with his own money; it belonged to him and not the Walsh family. Zane thought this would help his mother adjust but she was embarrassed to have been discarded at her age and would not leave the house. Still, she was comfortable, which was more than many other women in her position could say.

Zane's departure from the family home allowed Mr. Walsh to secretly move a young girl in to take his ex-wife's place. It was a secret, but the only person who did not know was Zane's mother who had been shut out by her friends and had become a recluse. Although Ian was vaguely aware of the details, he did not interfere in the personal lives of his employees and thus he did not pry. However, he was beginning to grow suspicious of Mr. Walsh, who seemed to be spending more and more every day. Although Zane did not specifically say anything, Ian still needed to heed his warnings and hired someone to investigate Mr. Walsh's activities.

Sure enough, Mr. Walsh was accepting bribes. Even worse was that he accepted "gifts" from the daughters of the men he helped. Many of whom were extremely young. This sort of behavior not only put Ian's company in a negative light but could potentially spark unwanted investigations into the Lee Group business practices. The Lee group was very well known, but they were very secretive. Although people knew the Lee Family was very wealthy and powerful, they were totally in the dark about how deep their well ran.

After conferring with Zane, Ian settled on removing Mr. Walsh from the company and now he was in the process of slowly uprooting those who were still loyal to Mr. Walsh. They complained to anyone who would listen that Mr. Walsh's "small" indiscretions should have been overlooked because it had always benefited the company. They also said that Ian was egotistical and proud, they said that he was afraid Mr. Walsh would one day usurp his power from within the company. Some went as far as to say that Ian and Zane were lovers who plotted against Mr. Walsh to avenge Zane's disgraced mother. That rumor bothered Zane the most, in his opinion he was obviously too good for Ian.

Amid the company's inner turmoil, two attempts were made on Ian's life but as his family had always been targeted for one reason or another, he had been trained in self-defense from an incredibly young age. This sort of thing was common among businessmen who wanted to ensure their sons would survive in the business world. Even the charismatic Zane knew how to kill a man with one hit. However, Mr. Walsh's supporters used this to stoke the fire within the company and said it was an example of how Ian's cold and aloof personality was damaging the image of the company. Without giving it much thought, Ian decided that these people had outlived their usefulness within the Lee group.

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Just then, the sign Ian was looking for hit the market. He had all he needed to remove the last supporters of Mr. Walsh without costing the company too greatly. He immediately called Zane and asked him to meet him in the lobby of the office. Once he arrived, Ian waited for his driver to open the car door. He looked out the window and saw a gorgeous woman entering his building. She was wearing a light blue button-down blouse paired with a tan, calf length skirt that flowed as she walked. Ian watched her walk inside the building until he could no longer see her. "Beautiful" he thought to himself as his driver opened the car door.

Ian was not a lustful person and had been in somewhat of a relationship for many years. He rarely found any women attractive, and his thought even surprised himself, but he was still a man. Perhaps the life of celibacy was finally getting to him. As he alighted from the car, his driver handed him his suit jacket. Ian adjusted his sleeves while shrugging his shoulders.

When Ian entered the building, Zane walked up to him in large strides, and said "Mr. President," Ian looked at him sarcastically and Zane flashed a cool smile. Since they were friends from youth, they never addressed each other with titles. Zane continued to speak. "The women you asked to come here have all gathered in the designated meeting hall with your sister." Ian nodded once and continued inside. As he walked, he asked Zane if he had seen a woman with the tan skirt. Zane was a little taken aback but did not question Ian. He simply reminded him that there were many women in the building today. Ian was aware as he had invited the women himself. It occurred to Ian that the woman he saw was so beautiful that if he were able to acknowledge it, others would certainly feel the same way. He suddenly felt sorry about what she must have gone through to help "save" her family. Although almost all men could have children, not all of them could be considered fathers.