Helen POV
When Chris asked, “Didn’t you know?” my entire body convulsed.
It felt as if someone had swung a hammer straight into my chest, and for a single moment, I forgot how to breathe.
I couldn’t lose myself now.
I had made a promise, whatever happened, I would stay by his side.
I had thought I would have more time before something like this happened.
I was wrong.
My mind went completely blank as the words minced meat echoed through my head.
My body froze, and a terrible thought settled into my mind.
No…
I didn’t want this.
I wanted Chris to have something normal.
An argument.
A fight.
Even if he got into trouble, I could deal with that.
But this?
Not killing someone.
Maybe he hadn’t killed him.
Maybe it really was an accident.
Yes, that had to be it.
But then I remembered what Chris had said: I’ll explain after the meeting.
That meant he was involved somehow.
What was I supposed to do?
Whatever the truth was, I would help him.
I would stay by his side until the day he told me himself that he didn’t need me anymore.
Even if he had killed someone, there had to be a reason.
Chris wasn’t the type to act without thinking, and there had been something in his expression when I asked him about Arthur.
The hesitation in his eyes.
The way he avoided answering immediately.
It meant something.
If he truly didn’t care what I thought, he wouldn’t have hesitated.
But he did.
That alone was enough for me.
Maybe Diablo had forced him.
Maybe this had been Diablo’s plan all along.
The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to believe that was the truth.
Yes…
that had to be it.
Chris clapped his hands together, breaking through my thoughts.
“Shall we begin?”
Only then did I finally look around the room.
Every member of the board looked terrified.
No, they weren’t simply afraid.
They were frightened of Chris.
His calm reply, that smile, and everything else about him had made the atmosphere unbearably heavy.
Then footsteps echoed outside.
Several of them.
The conference room doors suddenly swung shut with a loud bang, making nearly everyone flinch.
Chris simply smiled.
“Okay. Let’s begin.”
His eyes swept across the room.
“So… who are you recommending as the next CEO?”
Silence.
Nobody answered.
Instead, one of the directors slowly stood up.
“Chris…” His voice was hesitant.
“Did you do it?”
The room instantly became even quieter.
Chris tilted his head.
“How could a child who can’t even manage his own company do something like that?” His gaze then shifted toward me, and he smiled.
“Right, Helen? Can I really do something so atrocious?”
Every eye turned toward me.
For a second, my voice refused to come out.
I swallowed and forced myself to remain calm.
“How… how can you throw around such an accusation? He is just a child.”
One of the older board members immediately stood up.
“We’re leaving. We’ll continue this meeting after Arthur’s case is closed.”
Several others nodded in agreement.
No one wanted to remain here anymore.
Before anyone could move, Chris slowly stood up.
The room became silent again as he walked toward the old director.
Every step echoed through the conference room, yet nobody dared to stop him.
Chris stopped beside the large titanium-alloy conference table and rested one hand against its surface.
Then he tapped it once with his finger.
Thunk.
A deep dent appeared in the thick metal.
The entire room froze.
Someone gasped, while another nearly fell out of his chair.
Everyone stared at the massive dent in disbelief.
It was titanium.
Not wood.
Not plastic.
Solid titanium, and Chris had dented it with a single finger.
The expressions on their faces said everything.
Moments ago, they had feared Chris because of what he might have done to Arthur.
Now, they feared what he could do to them.
The atmosphere had changed completely.
This was no longer a boardroom filled with executives discussing company politics.
It was a room full of people trapped with someone they could no longer understand.
No one knew what would happen if they angered him.
Chris looked at the old director, then smiled.
“Come on. We didn’t wait this long when the previous CEO died, so why should we wait for someone who wasn’t even that important?”
Silence.
Then another elderly board member suddenly pointed at Chris.
“Y-You… You dented titanium… You’re…” His voice trembled.
“A mutant. You… you’re one of them.”
Mutant?
The word meant nothing to most of the people in the room.
Several directors exchanged confused glances.
Even I had never heard the term before.
Chris, however, looked genuinely irritated for the first time today.
His smile disappeared as he slowly turned toward the old man.
“Old man. If you open your mouth one more time…” His voice was calm.
Far too calm.
“You’ll meet a worse fate than Arthur.”
The old director’s face turned completely pale.
His lips trembled, but not another word escaped him.
Chris looked around the room once more, then smiled again as if nothing had happened.
“Okay. Then let’s vote. Who wants to see the results of the internal audit?”
Silence.
Not a single hand rose.
Chris looked around the room before smiling.
“Oh. No one wants that. I wanted one, so I could clear my parents’ names. I guess I’m not that lucky.”
Nobody spoke.
“Okay. Who thinks I’m not capable of making big decisions for this company?”
Again, silence.
“So… I can choose the next CEO then?”
“Yes.” Every board member answered almost in unison.
“Good.” Chris leaned back slightly.
“Then you’ll announce that I’m the next CEO. Helen will act as my legal representative and safeguard until I turn eighteen.”
He looked around the room before continuing.
“If anyone asks why a child is becoming CEO, tell them the company is changing its direction and that all of you believed my vision was the best choice.”
His gaze swept across the room.
“Say something.”
“Yes.” Everyone answered immediately.
“Good.” Chris nodded.
“Meeting adjourned.”
Almost everyone stood up at once.
They looked ready to run out of the room.
“Wait.” Chris’s single word stopped everyone in their tracks.
“Before you leave, let’s look at the presentation I prepared. It should convince all of you that my vision for the company’s future is the right one.”
No one dared object.
“Diablo.”
The doors opened, and the black-haired man responsible for everything walked inside.
Without saying a word, he handed everyone two folders, one blue and one red.
When he reached me, he placed two folders in front of me as well.
Mine were noticeably thicker than everyone else’s.
Chris sat back in his chair.
“Open the blue one.”
I slowly opened it, and my heart nearly stopped.
It contained everything.
Every director’s wife, children, parents, brothers, sisters, cousins, addresses, daily routines, and even family members living overseas.
I turned another page, and my breathing became uneven.
Hidden mistresses.
Illegitimate children.
Secret relationships.
Private bank accounts.
Nothing had been missed.
I slowly raised my head.
Who…
who is this child?
The same child who had quietly answered every question during the interrogation.
The same child who never raised his voice.
Why did it feel like I was looking at a completely different person?
Even then, a few directors managed to remain composed.
Chris noticed immediately, and his gaze shifted toward them.
“Open the red folder.”
The confidence on their faces disappeared.
I opened mine as well.
Every page contained crimes.
Embezzlement.
Bribery.
Tax fraud.
Money laundering.
Forgery.
Murder.
Blackmail.
Each accusation came with documents: bank transfers, photographs, witness statements, signed contracts.
There was enough evidence to keep every single one of them in prison for years.
No…
for decades.
I looked at Chris.
If he already had all of this, why did he even need today’s meeting?
Almost as if he had read my thoughts, he spoke.
“I know what all of you are thinking. If I already had all of this… why go through all this?”
Nobody answered.
Chris leaned forward.
His eyes had become frighteningly cold.
Not angry.
Not emotional.
Like a predator calmly watching trapped prey.
“Because…” He paused, letting the silence stretch.
“The next time you think about threatening my life… or even consider it… remember this.”
His gaze moved across the room.
“If I survive…” His voice remained calm.
“What do you think I’ll do to you?”
Silence.
Complete silence.
Threatening…
his life?
I looked around the room.
Every director wore the same expression.
They knew.
None of them looked surprised.
Which meant…
they had always known someone had threatened his life.
I was the only one who hadn’t understood what that truly meant.
To me, it had been nothing more than another tense board meeting.
I had never stopped to think about what he had been facing.
A child standing alone, surrounded by adults who wanted control.
Adults who had threatened his life simply to get what they wanted.
How scared, how lonely he must have been.
Yet he had never shown it.
No.
Whatever had happened before today didn’t matter anymore.
Right now, only one thing mattered: keeping him safe and making sure that, next time, he wouldn’t have to face everything alone.
…………….
Author’s Note
I went back and edited this chapter to improve the formatting and make the writing flow more naturally.
I’m have moved away from the one-line style and make the chapters feel more like an actual novel.
I hope the revised version reads better.
As always, thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next chapter!
date 12|08|2026.
Author’s Note Thanks for reading!
As always, comments, reviews, and ratings are greatly appreciated.