Rise Of The Disgraced Heir

"This way." Ian said as they approached the manager.

"Mr. Lim, Miss Montero." The manager greeted with a slight bow.

Ian glanced at his companions, it was clear that they were confused with what was happening. The manager of Nouveau was known as a cold and unmoving person so seeing him act so kindly to Ian and Camilla was a shock to most of them except Ash.

"Is Jake here already?" Camilla asked the manager.

"Yes, Mr. Laurel is with Mr. So waiting for you." The manager told them.

"Oh, Marco too. Okay, thanks." Ian said with a smile as he waved for their companions to follow him.

"Allow me." The manager told Ian as he led them towards the Reyes family's private room in the restaurant.

"Where are we going?" Fred asked Ian as they passed all of the vacant tables.

"A special table." Ian simply said as they finally reached the hidden entrance.

The manger opened the door and gestured for them to enter.

Ian and Camilla could hear the gasps of their companions as they entered the opulent room.

Inside, Jake and Macro were chatting at the head of the table where Jake sat.

"You're late." Jake said as his team members noticed that he was seated at the head of the table with the CEO's assistant seated next to him.

"It was Ian and Camilla. They enjoy working too much." Ash complained, to which Jake and Marco laughed.

"Trust me, they won't be doing anything but work for the next few years." Marco commented in a friendly tone, one that the employees have never heard.

"I think you've broken them." Jake said with a laugh as he waved for everyone to come over.

Ian, Camilla, and Ash all moved to take a seat, but the others remained frozen where they stood. 

It was clear that they were still trying to process what was happening and were still hesitant to trust that this wasn't some sort of trap.

Ian understood their hesitation, it was odd to find Jake and Marco sitting so casually around the table and chatting as if they had known each other for a while.

"This doesn't make sense." Fred finally spoke as Ian sat down across Marco with Camilla taking the vacant seat next to him. 

"What doesn't make sense?" Jake asked as he grinned at Fred. 

It was clear that he just wanted Fred to say his doubts out loud and that he was enjoying everyone's shock and confusion.

"I swear Jake, you are making things harder on them." Camilla commented as several waiters entered the room with wine and food in hand.

"Why don't you guys take your seats so that we can explain things in a calmer and more organized manner." Marco suggested as he returned to his old calm and distant demeanor. 

The sales team members looked at each other, there wasn't anything else they could do so they all took their seats as Marco suggested.

"Do you know what's going on?" Fred asked Ash as he took a seat next to her.

"Just listen for once." Ash said with a laugh. "And relax, no one is in trouble."

Fred simply nodded in response as a waiter served him food and a glass of wine.

"Isn't it too early for this?" One of Jake's team members asked as she pointed at the glass of wine in front of her. "Is this some sort of trick to catch if we drink during office hours?"

"First of all, it's not office hours, second, you'll need it." Ian told them with a grin as he drank from his own glass to show that it wasn't a trap.

"If you say so." The woman said as she tentatively reached for the glass in front of her.

When no one said anything she proceeded to take a sip.

Jake and Marco waited for the restaurant staff to exit the room before speaking again. When the door closed behind the waiters Ian cleared his throat and looked at Jake.

It seemed that the older man was rehearsing his speech in his head.

"Right." Jake said with a nod as he looked at the different members of his former team.

"Today is the last day that I'll be your manager." Jake announced as everyone whispered amongst themselves guessing why Jake was leaving them.

"Relax, don't worry, you will all be in good hands." He said in a loud voice making sure that everyone in the room heard what he had to say.

"What do you mean?" One of his former team members asked as he gave Jake a concerned look.

"Your old manager, do you remember why he left or was made to leave?" Jake asked them.

"There was an investigation where they discovered that he was stealing money from the company and taking bribes from clients." Fred answered as he recalled what had happened to the old manager of their team.

"Right." Jake responded with a nod. "He wasn't guilty of any of that." He told them.

"We knew." Ash spoke up.

"Good." Jake said as he once more tried to read their expressions. "Your old manager and some of your former teammates were victims of Mike's and Armand's schemes and plots. They were pushed out once they showed promise or once they became a threat to Mike and Armand."

Everyone remained silent, it seemed that they all knew that this was happening but were powerless to stop it.

Ian sighed at the injustice that had happened because of Mike and Armand. They had caused people to suffer just for their own greed and ambition.

"Your old manager will be coming back and taking over my role." Jake explained. He noticed that some people wanted to speak up and ask questions, but he decided to continue what he was telling them. "Some of you will be moved to different teams, but don't worry, everyone will be made aware that you were all victims."

"Add to it the fact that everyone will want to be their friends." Ash commented in a low voice that not everyone heard.

"Ash." Camilla scolded her.

"It's true." Ash said with a knowing grin.

"And what about you?" One of the team members asked. "Are you leaving us?"

"No. He's getting a promotion." Macro said with a laugh as he shook his head.. "To a role that should have been his the moment he was hired."