Part 2He Promoted His Mistress So I Fired Him

I knew better than anyone: a mass walkout of the core team meant catastrophic destruction for the firm.

“Outsider?” Marcus scoffed. “Sienna is like family. I’ve mentored her, watched her grow, and I won’t stand by while she’s bullied.”

“I gave her a small promotion. Why did you have to turn this into a war, terminating her just to spite me?”

When had I ever tried to spite him? This was a calculated smear.

“What benefits did Sienna bring the firm in the last six months to justify a meteoric rise to Department Manager?”

“As far as I know, not only did she fail to contribute, but her gross negligence cost us the contracts with Crestwood Holdings and Zenith Capital. The direct loss is over two million dollars.”

I hadn’t pursued legal action against her—that was my mercy. And now they wanted me to compromise?

Hearing me bring up old failings, the smile vanished from Sienna’s face, and she immediately turned a look of wounded innocence on Marcus.

“Marcus, listen to her! She failed to close those clients herself, but she’s making me take the fall! She’s deliberately giving me impossible projects, just so I can’t succeed. She’s professionally bullying me!”

Her words were the spark. Marcus’s loyalists—his former college peers and recruits—erupted into indignation.

“A boss who sabotages staff instead of supporting them? That’s appalling!”

“Exactly. There’s no future with an owner like that. We have to stand with Sienna!”

“We won’t bow to this injustice!”

In an instant, the conference room was filled with a flurry of accusations, as if I were the ruthless, evil one.

I watched these unfamiliar faces with cold detachment. All of them had been slotted in by Marcus during the six months I was gone.

I was beginning to understand exactly what Marcus was attempting.

He was trying to isolate and neutralize me.

I thought back to when he first arrived—a young intern whose carelessness nearly got him fired, a kid who could only hang his head and apologize when he messed up.

If I hadn't come down with a severe stomach bug that one time, and if he hadn’t carried me downstairs and rushed me to the emergency room… I probably never would have noticed him. I wouldn’t have taken him under my wing, and I certainly wouldn't have… fallen in love with him.

I never imagined his ambition was this vast, his appetite this greedy.

But this little squall? He thought this was enough to capsize my ship? He was gravely mistaken.

I casually picked up the top resignation letter, weighed it in my hand, then tossed it back onto the table in front of Marcus with a look of utter scorn.

“Threatening me? I’m Camille Rhodes. I’ve seen worse than this.”

“Anyone who wants to leave, you are free to process your paperwork now. The door is open. Don’t let it hit you on the way out.”

My words stunned the room into silence. Everyone exchanged uneasy glances. They hadn't anticipated that I would simply refuse to bend to their coercion.

Marcus’s face instantly darkened, his expression so grim it looked like rain would pour from it.

“Are you sure you want to play this game?”

“What did you expect? Isn’t this exactly what you wanted?”

“You want to threaten me with resignations? Threats are the one thing Camille Rhodes does not fear.”

“This firm can run without anyone. If you want to walk, I won’t beg you to stay.”

Sienna panicked, grabbing Marcus’s arm.

“Marcus, what is this…?”

“Don’t worry. I’m here. She can’t touch you.”

Marcus stood up and walked toward me.

“I forgot to mention one thing, Camille. This firm? It’s mine now.”

“I wanted to be decent, let you keep your title, let you take your dividends quietly—after all, I owe you. But since you insisted on making a scene, don’t blame me for letting go of the past.”

“What does that mean?”

I met his icy gaze, lifting my chin.

Marcus smiled, reaching out to pat my shoulder, but I deliberately shifted, avoiding his touch. Unfazed, he lowered his hand and adjusted his cuff links.

“It means I’ve secured the support of the other partners and completed an internal vote. I am the de facto controller of Aether Advisors. I choose who works here and who doesn’t. Understood?”

Sienna nearly jumped for joy.

“Marcus! Is that true?”

Marcus gave her a confirming nod.

Sienna immediately rushed to hug his arm, jutting her chin up at me in blatant victory. The others in the room seemed to find this familiarity normal, relieved only that they had backed the winning side.