Chapter 9
Alexander's POV
After the two children left, I returned to my expressionless demeanor.
Eva walked over and said, "Alpha, those two kids are absolutely adorable. Here are the raw shots we just took—they're very photogenic. Take a look."
I'd kept yesterday's incident under wraps—only the people who were there knew what happened. Caleb had even paid everyone off to keep their mouths shut.
I'd planned to make things right with those kids, but the older boy had grabbed his brother and disappeared before I could blink. I was too busy managing the chaos to notice until it was too late, so I'd sent Eva to track them down.
The last thing I expected was for them to show up here today. Gutsy kids—most children would be too scared to come back after what happened yesterday.
I studied the photos of the two children carefully. The younger one looked well-behaved in his shots, though there was some panic in his eyes.
For him to push through that fear and audition anyway... these kids had to be desperate for money. Probably trying to help their family make ends meet.
No parents in sight either time—that sealed it for me.
This assumption made me like the two children even more.
The older boy's photos hit me differently—there was steel in his eyes, a seriousness that seemed too old for his face. When he frowned, he looked like he was carrying the weight of the world.
They were both bright kids, but complete opposites. Together, they were magnetic—the camera loved them.
The more I looked, the more I liked them.
What really got to me was seeing myself in them—the same determination I'd had as a kid.
I decided to have Eva sign them both.
"Very photogenic. Sign both kids and pay them according to our highest child model rates from previous years."
"Also, release some of these photos and see how they're received."
"Yes, Alpha."
A thought struck me. "Is the guy who was keeping the daily logs when this project started still here?"
I'I'd set up a system for all Crown & Gem projects—someone had to keep detailed daily logs from day one. Partly for oversight, but mainly to catch any safety violations or worker injuries. Any problems were supposed to go straight to my assistant, then Caleb would brief me.
But I'd never gotten a single injury report from Glamour Lens. Caleb wouldn't lie to me, which meant someone on-site was covering things up.
Eva nodded. "Yes, Alpha. Would you like to see him?"
"Yes, and while you're at it, find me those log sheets. I want to review them."
"Of course."
In Glamour Lens's office, Caleb handed me a file.
"Alpha, the construction company that built Glamour Lens has vanished. Turns out their CEO had a private meeting with Miss Austen a while back, and then he just... disappeared."
"But there's no record of financial transactions, only records of Miss Austen withdrawing cash from the bank."
I nodded grimly. Cash deals weren't unusual, but why run afterward?
There had to be something fishy going on.
"By the way, " Caleb said. "Alpha, I also looked into Crystal—she is indeed Freya Austen. Her mother was also a jewelry designer, quite renowned in Star Pack. Her name was Juniper White."
"Crown & Gem was founded single-handedly by Freya's mother. Before her death, she stipulated that the company would be left to her daughter. Alpha Marcus agreed to this as well, but then the incident five years ago..."
He didn't need to elaborate further. As someone who was directly involved, I naturally knew the details better than he did. After all, that incident back then had indeed caused quite a stir.
I couldn't help but fall into deep thought. Mention of the events from five years ago reminded me of Tiffany's strange behavior last night.
Since the coffee she'd brought me had gone cold, I'd brewed a fresh cup and finished it.
When Tiffany came in afterward, something was distinctly off about her.
She loves me, that much is clear. What happened between us five years ago should have sealed our fate—I should put a ring on her finger and be done with it. But every instinct I have is screaming that something's off.
Soon the record keeper arrived.
"What's your name?" I asked.
"Tom Smith, Alpha. You can just call me Tom."
I cut straight to the point. "These logs say everything was fine, but you were there when that guy showed up yesterday screaming about his son. If nothing went wrong, where did that accident come from?"
"And these logs claim no materials were swapped out. I handpicked that supplier myself—they've never let me down. So how did faulty materials cause someone to get hurt?"
Tom's answer was brutally honest. "I have no idea."
His bluntness threw me. Most people would at least try to bullshit their way out of this.
Alpha, two of us split the logging duties. When I started my shifts, everything was clean. I checked the materials myself—no substitutions."
"Where's the other person?" I frowned.
"He quit."
"When approximately?"
"Three months ago."
My blood ran cold. Three months ago—the exact time that man said his son got hurt.
There was definitely something suspicious here.
"Hold on. You said nothing was substituted, but this shows Breeze Building Materials. That's not who I ordered from."
Tom was confused, "Hasn't it always been Breeze Building Materials?"
"What?!" I roared, "But I specifically ordered everything from Sunshine Building Materials..."
The pieces clicked into place. They'd never used my supplier to begin with, so of course there was no "substitution."
Wrong suppliers, a missing record keeper, a vanished construction company, unpaid workers.
Someone was bleeding Crown & Gem dry from the inside.
And the embezzlement amount was substantial!
Freya's words from yesterday echoed in my head—the Star Pack was full of bloodsuckers.
Internal troubles and external threats indeed.
A cold smile spread across my face. They'd gotten sloppy, and now I was going to destroy them.
"Alright, I understand. You can go."
Just then the company phone rang—it was Freya calling.
"I've found some things you need to see. If you don't deal with this, I'm stuck—I can't take on these people alone."
"I understand. I'll be back shortly."
I hung up and leaned back in my chair, pieces of the puzzle swirling in my head.
"It all leads back to Tiffany, but she's not stupid enough to sabotage her own company. Someone's playing games behind her back, and I'm going to find out who."