Rising from the Ashes (Andrew and Lauren)

Before Charlie could even finish his sentence, Tiana cut him off coldly. "Right now, what's more important-the company's future or your pride? I don't think I need to spell it out

r you."

Charlie's stomach twisted. He knew there was no way out of this-whether he liked it or not, he had to go through with it.

At Tiana's signal, Marcus dialed Andrew's number again and then handed the phone to Charlie with a polite smile.

Charlie forced out a stiff chuckle. "Mr. Lloyd, it's Charlie Mitchell, one of the senior board members. I was just wondering when do you plan on returning to the company?"

He tried to keep his tone as respectful as possible, swallowing his pride. A second later, Andrew's voice came through, completely indifferent. "Get lost."

The call cut off-no hesitation, no explanation.

Charlie stood there, gripping the phone, his face turning a deep shade of red. "That little bastard! He actually told me to get lost! Me!"

Fuming, he raised the phone, ready to smash it against the ground.

Marcus quickly called out, "Mr. Mitchell, that's my phone! If you break it, you're paying for it!"

Charlie's hand froze in midair, his entire body stiff with rage. Around the room, several people struggled to contain their laughter, their shoulders shaking as they covered their mouths.

Andrew had guts, that was for sure. He did not just ignore Charlie-he had straight-up dismissed him like he was nothing.

Tiana, unfazed, glanced around the room. "Since Mr. Mitchell couldn't bring Mr. Lloyd back, we'll move on. Next -Mr. Olson, head of security, your turn."

The moment she called his name, David Olson's face twisted into something close to despair.

Some executives, especially those on better terms with Andrew, were not too worried. Even if they failed, at least they would not be completely humiliated.

But Michael's lackeys? They were in for hell.

One by one, they dialed.

"Mr. Lloyd, the company really needs you. Could you please come back and take charge?"

"Fuck off."

"Mr. Lloyd, please, don't be upset! This was all just a

misunderstanding. We're all in this

together now, so you can't just abandon us!"

"Who the hell are you? Do I know you? You want me to save you? What are you, my kid? Get lost."

"Mr. Lloyd, we're in a crisis. Instead of holding grudges, shouldn't we all work together? As a board member, how could you be so crude and irresponsible?"

"So what if I'm crude? So what if I don't give a damn? What are you gonna do?

Bite me? Screw off!"noveldrama

The calls ended one by one, and

Rhodes Corporation's executives fell

into a suffocating silence.

Frustration, humiliation, and outright

fury spread through the room like wildfire.

+25 BORUS

"This is outrageous! That bastard actually dares to treat us like this! He owes us an apology!"

"Unbelievable. I've been in business for decades, and never in my life have I been insulted like this. Andrew, you've gone too far!"

"I mean, fine, if he doesn't want to help, whatever! But does he have to go out of his way to humiliate us? Screw him!"

The executives who had been personally cursed out were trembling with rage, barely keeping themselves together.

Meanwhile, Marcus and his team stood quietly off to the side, looking perfectly composed. But deep down? They were enjoying every second of it.

After all, nearly half of Rhodes Corporation's top executives had just been publicly humiliated by Andrew.

And Marcus? He was lucky enough to be excluded from the massacre.

This was history in the making. Not even Tiana or the head of the Rhodes family had ever dared to go this far.

Yet Andrew, a single board member, had just single-handedly torn through the entire company's leadership like it was nothing.

And the worst part? There wasn't a damn thing anyone could do about it.