At a VIP airport lounge, Henry sat in a comfortable chair, checking the documents received from the Bureau of Lands. His eyes focused on his laptop screen, occasionally tapping the mouse. His eyebrows gradually knitted, and the hand on the mouse tensed. He clenched his other hand while glaring at the documents on the screen. The Bureau of Land Controls dared to play a word game with him! His expression got colder,r and his hands hovered over the keyboard for a second before typing something at a shocking speed.

A moment later, Andy walked in with a grey document file in his hands. He stood beside the table and passed the file respectfully. "Boss, this is the file you requested. As you'd expected, they've been aware of the recent changes and they can't sit still anymore."

Henry took the file, scanned it before closing, and raised his head to look at Andy. "Schedule an executive meeting in two hours. I believe it is time to weed out the mole."

***

Salva Corp. headquarters

Inside an executive meeting room, Henry leaned casually in the boardroom chair. He had a black custom-made shirt adorned with diamond cufflinks. His curly hair framed his face and a black leather necklace peeked through his slightly unbuttoned shirt. There was neither a trace of smile nor warmth on his face. Even his gaze seemed to contain shards of ice. No one dared to breathe loudly in the room and the eerie silence made everyone uncomfortable.

One of the executives couldn't sit still anymore. "President Salva, the chairman has already approved the Elanore project. All it needs is your signature." Henry flashed him a deadly look, and this voice softened, "If you would take a look... sorry, when you have time, could you please sign so the construction can start?"

Henry fidgeted with the back pen on the table without saying a word. Perhaps he wasn't even listening. Fifteen or so executives in the room were equally silent, holding their breaths in fear of interrupting his thoughts. The tension in the room thickened with each passing second.

An eternity later, Henry graced them with his words. "That project?  I've already rejected it."

"What?" the Bureau of Lands' representative, Mr. Hakim, a man in his fifties, banged the table and shot up. "What do you mean by 'rejected it'? Huh? It took our department three months to draft a proposal after spending the last year working on the budget and the business metrics. Young boy, do you think this is child's play?" He got angrier, "Do you know how much money we'll lose?"

Henry sat up, clasped his hands, and rested on the table. "Oh, it seems you care about the company's welfare. Then I presume you already know that the land you acquired is a cultural center."

Deputy Chief Hakim's face lost all color as he sat, and everyone's gaze turned in his direction. According to the law, a cultural center cannot be acquired for private use.

"But that is not why I called you here," Henry said as Andy walked in with a pile of documents, placed them on his table, and sat in the chair beside him. Henry threw a couple of A4 papers across the table to his uncle, Deputy Chief Hakim. Those present craned their necks and caught a glimpse of a newspaper clipping showing what seemed to be a riot.

"Uncle, you always interfere with any project that I look forward to," Henry's angry voice reverberated through the silent room. "For the sake of a mere 10 million dollars, you did not care about those people's lives. It is fine if the contractor is treacherous, but if you can control it, you should control it. I helped you get in touch with them, and you made such a big mistake! How are we, the investors, going to deal with this?"

Henry pressed a tiny remote control, and a big screen lit up. A disturbing video of an injured old man holding dearly to a young child played on the screen. Behind the old man, several forklifts were ready for demolition. Audible gasps could be heard in the room.

"The demolition hasn't begun, yet there are already residents who want to commit suicide. What method are you using? forcing a dead end?" Henry shouted.

"You are just a young boy," Deputy Chief Hakim retorted, pointing at Henry. "How dare you question me in front of all these people?"

Henry turned off the screen and stood up. "Until this matter is resolved, no one is allowed to touch a single brick at Savannah Street. Otherwise, don't blame me for firing you. Deputy Chief Hakim, you must be responsible for your mistakes!"

***

Chen Corporation headquarters, USA.

"CEO Chen, your new secretary is here. She's waiting in your office." An elderly man in an Armani suit, probably Robert's assistant, informed Robert as soon as he arrived at the lobby.

Robert nodded and accepted the contract in his hand. He flipped through while walking into the lift leading to the 18th floor. A hint of displeasure appeared in his eyes as he read the terms and conditions of the contract. He shoved the contract back to his secretary, who followed him like a tail, and smirked. "Do they think our Chen corporation is easy to take advantage of?"

"But, boss, the Project this time is..."

Robert opened the door to his office and he stood rooted on the spot with his hand still on the door handle. He did not hear the rest of his assistant's words. His eyes were locked onto a slender figure sitting in his office. His eyes narrowed and darted around hesitantly before turning to his assistant. "Is that the new secretary?"

"Yes, her name is Cynthia Morgan. She's a top finance student from Harvard and..."

"Cynthia Morgan?" Robert asked again, walking into the office.

Cynthia stood, smiled, and nodded. "CEO Chen."

Robert stood without a word. Cindy had changed so much over the past few years that he could barely recognize her. He signaled his secretary to leave first and leaned against the glass wall with his arms folded. "Why are you here?"

"Work, of course."

"Great. You may leave now. Get my assistant to assign you some work." After saying that, Robert proceeded to his table and glanced at the pile of documents waiting for his approval. He got ready for work, ignoring the stunned Cindy.

Cindy's grip tightened on the stack of papers in her hand. After a moment of hesitation, she followed Robert and stood by the table.

Robert did not even raise his head. "If you really want to work here, please follow the rules," he said, distance vivid in his voice.

"Robert..." A tinge of sadness appeared in Cindy's eyes. "Don't be like this. We were once good friends. Please don't alienate me."

"Then go straight to the point. I'm not Henry. I don't have the patience to listen to your nonsense," Robert sneered and gave her a cold gaze. "Tell me, after nearly five years, why are you suddenly looking for me?"

"I want to see him."

"See who?" The hand that was about to sign a document paused. He looked at the woman who used to be so proud, but now stood nervous and uneasy before him, and a mocking smile formed on his lips.

"Henry."

Robert chuckled. "Ms. Morgan, after four and a half years, you remembered to look for Henry. Don't you think it's too late?" He took a deep breath to regulate his temper. "Besides, you have found the wrong person."

"I have no way of contacting him, so I can only find you," Cindy explained, her voice soft but not weak. It was still as clear and melodious as it used to be. "I know you can find him. "he doesn't respond to any of my calls or messages unless they are from my little girl, Layla. Can you let me go with you?"

Robert leaned back on his chair and remained quiet. Cindy got even more restless and assumed a pleading posture. "Please help me, Robert." Her eyes moistened, and she blinked away the tears threatening to fall. "I want to find him."

Robert sighed. "Now I regret coming back." He closed his eyes and massaged his temples. "Aren't you afraid that while you were away, Henry fell in love with someone else? He might have forgotten you."

"He didn't. He isn't a man who can change his mind easily. I believe he won't forget me, and definitely, won't marry someone else," Cindy said, her voice full of certainty.

"What makes you so certain?"

"I feel it."

"Feel?" Robert laughed, anger evident in his voice. "How laughable! You think you have him wrapped around your little finger? You are too confident. Back then, he loved you in every possible way, and yet, he couldn't defeat your ambition. You didn't even think twice before betraying him. Four years later, you have the guts to tell me that?"

"I'm sorry, but I have to try," Cindy pleaded.

"What if I say no?"

"You will help me. I'm sure."

"Why?" Robert raised his eyebrows.

"You want him to return to Boston. He left because of me."

Robert looked at the determination in Cindy's eyes and sighed. Cindy was a person from Henry's past who couldn't be mentioned. He couldn't imagine the consequences if Cindy went to look for him. He did not know if this was good or bad and did not have the confidence to gamble with Henry's feelings.

A/N: Hey, what do you think about this chapter? Will he help her? What do you think will happen if she meets Henry again?

Quick clarification: Manager Chen from chapter 2 and Robert Chen are two different people. Henceforth, Chen will refer to Sarah's friend, Robert. (Why not get a different name? Well, people have similar surnames sometimes in real life.)