C6 6

After the divorce, James decided that he would finally quit his cleaning job at the local grocery store to concentrate more on expanding his business empire.

Hence, he will go ahead to deal with the Carl family and the Sterling Dynasty and show them that he is the one in charge now.

He wanted to prove that he was the new boss and make them regret their actions. Alisha and her family would soon realize their mistake and come back begging.

When he arrived at his workplace to let his boss know that he was quitting his job, there was a surprising turn of events.

Two men in uniform walked up to him. These were police officers from the police department in Emerald Falls.

James found himself face-to-face with the two stern police officers who wasted no time in apprehending him.

"You're under arrest!" The first officer declared.

"Yeah, we've got reports on you for stealing," added the second officer, whose tone was accusatory.

Despite the shock of the situation, James remained remarkably calm. He knew he had done nothing wrong and needed answers.

"I didn't steal anything. What's going on here?" he replied.

The first officer was having none of it. "Don't play innocent! We've got evidence against you."

James maintained his composure. "I need to know what this is about. I haven't stolen anything."

The second officer continued with the harsh rhetoric. "You're in big trouble now. Just cooperate with us and nobody gets hurt."

Still calm, James persisted. "I'm willing to cooperate, but I want to understand what's happening now."

The first officer seemed unmoved. "Save it for the station. You'll need it."

"I need to talk to my boss, first," James urgently requested. "You'll see, I'm not a thief. There has been a mistake somewhere."

"Get that Imbecile out of here," Mr. Micheal directed them.

Earlier this morning, the store owner, Mr. Michael had discovered that his strongbox had gone missing.

The surveillance footage suggested that James might be responsible because he had visited the store very late two nights ago, and probably spent the night there.

And of course, he has the key to the store which made it all easy for him to get in.

Mr. Michael is a rather tough man, known for being very rude and harsh to his employees, especially to James.

Which is why he wasted no time in getting James arrested.

Whenever James comes late to work or makes a little mistake, Mr. Micheal always makes sure he deals with him very badly with a slap on the face or he uses his belt to flog him like a little child.

"You will continue working for me as a cleaner till you die miserably poor." He is known to say to James.

"I'm sorry… boss!"

"Sorry for yourself."

Sometimes he even goes as far as not paying him his salary for the month.

James had no choice but to endure all of this to the point some of his colleagues started treating him the same way too.

"You can never make it in life James." They would always ridicule him.

As he was being led away, James suspected that Alisha's new lover, Jaxon, might be behind this scheme to frame him.

'Alisha warned me about this but I didn't listen.'

He noticed a man standing alongside Mr Micheal in the office.

The man was watching him with a smirk and laughing heartily. It became evident that this was all part of a plot they had hatched together.

The man had even bribed some of his colleagues to tell lies about him and help in the conspiracy to incriminate him.

James was accompanied by the two police officers to the station and some bystanders including people who knew him, and some who were friends of the Carl family watched as the whole thing unfolded.

"So, this guy is a petty thief..." They started talking among themselves.

"Caught red-handed. What a shame."

"Guess you're not as innocent as you look."

"What a way to end up on the wrong side of the law."

They even went ahead to capture the whole thing on video.

And soon James' face was all over the internet and social media as a thief.

***

In Emerald Multisource Cooperation, Alisha was going about her work absent-mindedly.

Finally, she has been promoted to the position of manager, which should have been a reason to celebrate.

Her mom has already started making preparations for the celebration. Inviting everyone.

However, rumors about her relationship with Jaxon were circulating throughout the company, and it was affecting her concentration.

Alisha noticed that her colleagues, who were now her subordinates due to her new managerial role, were giving her strange looks.

Their glances were curious and perhaps judgmental, making her feel uneasy and self-conscious.

"Did you guys hear about Alisha's scandal with Jaxon? Disgraceful." Sasha the receptionist was gossiping with Cindy and some others.

"Yes, she only got that promotion because of Jaxon."

"It's a shame she's the manager now, considering her messy love life."

"I can't believe she cheated on James."

"Jaxon seems to be getting all the perks. Must be nice for her."

"I thought we were a professional company, but it looks like we're in a soap opera now," Vera, the funny one among them, said jokingly.

"Hahahahaha!" they all burst out laughing.

Out of the blue, someone rushed in and blurted out that James had been arrested.

"It's all over the Internet guys."

"Wait, which James are you talking about?"

"James, ex-husband to Alisha Carl."

Alisha was completely caught off guard by this shocking news.

She has been eavesdropping on the conversation outside her office.

"I feel so sorry for the poor dude."

"He doesn't look like someone capable of such an act."

She immediately searched on her computer and saw the news too.

Truly James was innocent and Alisha knew this.

Alisha believed that James had likely been set up or falsely accused by Jaxon.

'I warned him to leave town, but his stubbornness wouldn't let him listen.'

She wanted to leave the office and go bail him, but she was nervous, not knowing what to do.

She grabbed her phone and tried to call Jaxon, but despite multiple attempts, the call wouldn't connect.

Alisha was still in a state of shock when she received an unexpected call from Mr. Thomas Sterling, her boss, who also happened to be Jaxon's father.

"Hello, Sir!"

"Alisha, I need you to do something important for me," Thomas Sterling began.

"Of course Sir, what can I do for you?" Alisha replied respectfully and attentively.

"The company has a new CEO now. I want you to go outside and welcome him. Make sure you inform everyone and make sure everything is smooth and organized for his arrival," Mr. Sterling instructed.

Alisha's surprise was evident, she always thought that the Sterlings owned the company.

"A new CEO? Does this mean you have been fired?"

"No, I will be appointed head of the board." Mr. Sterling boasted vaguely. "Now, here's the strange part. I've been trying to reach my son, Jaxon, on the phone, but I can't seem to get through to him."

"That is strange, I also tried calling him earlier but it didn't connect. I hope he's okay."

"Yes, yes, he's probably just busy with something. Anyway, focus on welcoming the new CEO. This is an important moment for the company."

"Okay! I'll make sure everything goes smoothly for the new CEO's arrival."

"Thank you, Alisha. You've always been reliable. Now, I need to go. We have a lot to prepare."

He hung up.

Ryan Wane, James' uncle had secretly bought the company for James overnight, which left even the company's board members astonished. They couldn't believe that such a significant acquisition had taken place.

Alisha found herself in a state of confusion and surprise because she had no prior knowledge about these new developments.

She wasn't even aware that the company had been purchased until her boss informed her.

And then, just as she was processing this bombshell of information, "Wait, what?" she exclaimed to herself. "Emerald Multisource Cooperation was bought overnight."