Chapter 360: Dismissal

When Zachary arrived at his parents’ house, he noticed that all of his siblings’ cars were already parked outside.

“Hmmm…Looks like I’m the last one…” he muttered as he stepped out of his car. His father’s butler, Geoffrey, was already waiting at the door and stepped forward to greet him.

“Young master,” Geoffrey said politely as he opened the door.

“Everyone’s inside?”

“Yes, sir. They arrived not too long ago. I think about five minutes before you arrived, sir.” ℯ𝓵.

Zachary paused and checked his watch. He wasn’t late at all. In fact, he arrived exactly when he was expected. It seemed his siblings had simply decided to come early, most likely because they didn’t want to keep their father waiting.

“It seems they all wanted to please Dad,” Zachary remarked dryly.

Geoffrey chuckled lightly as he followed Zachary inside. “You might be right, young master. I believe no one wants to be the last person to arrive when the old master calls everyone together.”

Zachary glanced at him with an amused look. “Apparently, I’m the only one willing to take the risk.”

Geoffrey smiled but wisely said nothing.

“Riley’s inside too?”

“Yes. He came with his father.”

Zachary’s expression remained calm, although his eyes briefly sharpened at the answer. He nodded slightly and didn’t ask anything else. Whatever his father wanted to discuss, he would find out soon enough. He followed Geoffrey through the house, and they headed straight toward his father’s home office.

A short while later, they arrived at the door.

Geoffrey opened it for him, and Zachary stepped inside. His eyes immediately swept across the room. All of his siblings were already there, along with his father, Kennedy, and Riley.

However, Zachary was taken aback when his gaze fell on his mother, Hannah, who was seated beside his father.

It was rare for their mother to attend meetings like this. Hannah had never been involved in the family’s business affairs, preferring to stay away from the decisions and conflicts that came with running the Sterling Group. Her presence in the home office immediately told Zachary the situation was more serious than he’d expected.

Still, he put his curiosity aside and quietly walked over to take the empty seat beside his twin sister, Zoey.

The moment he sat down, Zoey leaned slightly toward him.

“Why did you come so late?” she whispered.

Zachary didn’t even bother looking at her. “I’m not late.”

Zoey frowned, but he ignored her and kept his attention on their father. He could already feel the heaviness in the room, and he had no intention of getting distracted by his sister’s complaints. 𝖋𝙧ⅇ

Kennedy Sterling sat in his seat with a stern expression. He had been silent until everyone was settled. Still, the tension in the room had continued to build with every passing second. Finally, he cleared his throat loudly.

“You all know why I’ve called you here,” he began. His voice was calm, but it carried unmistakable weight. “The news coverage regarding Riley and Sterling Tech simply cannot be suppressed.”

He paused and looked at his children and grandchildren one by one, making sure every person in the room understood the seriousness of his words.

“For the past two days, my old friends who hold shares in our company have been reaching out to me. They have been urging me to resolve this matter before it causes further damage to the company.”

The room became noticeably quieter.

Kennedy’s expression grew more serious as he turned his attention toward his eldest son, William. He didn’t speak immediately. The silence itself was enough to make everyone feel the pressure of what was coming.

“As we discussed earlier, I authorized you to settle the Sterling Tech matter.” His gaze remained fixed on William. “Have you done so?”

William’s expression tightened instantly. His hands, which had been resting casually on his lap, slowly curled into tight fists. He had clearly expected the question, but that didn’t make it any easier to answer in front of the entire family.

With everyone’s attention fixed on him, William cleared his throat before replying in a low, heavy voice.

“Yes. Riley’s dismissal will be officially announced to the media tomorrow.”

Hannah’s expression changed immediately. She looked at Kennedy in disbelief before turning toward her son.

“Isn’t there any other way?” she asked anxiously. “Hasn’t the legal process yet to be concluded?”

Her voice carried the sadness of a mother who knew she was losing the only option she had left to protect her grandson.

“Mother,” William replied with a wry smile, though there was no humor in it. “I want my son to stay with the company, but I can’t make that decision anymore. The news out there has severely damaged our reputation, and our shareholders are already demanding answers. There is nothing else we can do now but this… Riley has to step down from the company while the legal process is underway, so that the company’s operations are not disrupted.”

Hannah lowered her gaze, clearly struggling to accept his words.

“Yes, Hannah. This is the only way now,” Kennedy added. He reached for his wife’s hand and squeezed it gently. His voice softened slightly when he spoke to her, but his decision remained firm. “Creswell has strong evidence that Riley and his team stole their program and used it to win a tender. We can’t ignore that, especially with the amount of attention the case is receiving.”

Hannah could only sigh softly. Sadness and pity were still visible in her eyes as she looked toward her grandson. She knew Kennedy and William were trying to protect the company, but that did not make it any easier to accept that Riley would be the one to suffer for it.

“Oh, dear Riley,” she said quietly. “I hope you can learn from this incident, dear.”

Riley couldn’t bring himself to respond. He simply nodded and kept his gaze lowered, trying to avoid the eyes of everyone around him. The pressure in the room was becoming unbearable, especially with his future already decided.