My CEO Husband Says I'm Irreplaceable

Chapter 61: Chapter 61: A Face of Doom

"This wasn’t a mistake. This was a grave dereliction of duty! What makes you think everyone is willing to bet their fortunes on you?" Kyle Zimmerman’s gaze was sharp as a knife. "Today, all shareholders will vote according to their equity."

"All in favor of removing Luke Lockwood from all his positions as Chairman and President—raise your hands."

Arm after arm shot up in unison.

The vote was overwhelming. The outcome was never in doubt.

"The vote is now effective. Effective immediately, Luke Lockwood is no longer the Chairman or Chief President of the group. All his authority is terminated. The company seals, access rights, and all documents are to be fully transferred to the interim takeover committee."

"Furthermore, the company reserves the full right to pursue financial compensation and legal action against Luke Lockwood."

Every word landed like a hammer blow.

Luke Lockwood sat in the head seat, his fingertips tightening abruptly until his knuckles turned white.

In that moment, he was brutally cast aside by the very empire he had built with his own hands.

To appease the few brothers who had fought alongside him to build Zephyr, he had given them five percent of the shares. He never imagined it would be the last straw that broke the camel’s back today.

As Kyle Zimmerman walked past him, he reminded him in a low voice, "If there’s nothing else, President Lockwood, you can leave as soon as the handover is complete!"

Once Kyle Zimmerman left, the others filed out one by one.

As the minority shareholders passed him, they wore apologetic expressions.

"Luke Lockwood, we’re really sorry. We had no choice."

"You shouldn’t have offended Zenith. They’re deliberately targeting you."

"You should think hard about whether you’ve done something to offend Zenith in the past."

Kyle Zimmerman personally watched him complete the handover and saw him out of the company before taking out his phone to make a call.

"President Hawthorne, Luke Lockwood has been dismissed. The handover is complete. The next step is to dilute his shares bit by bit."

...

Luke Lockwood had just been "escorted" out of the building by company security. An intimidating chill emanated from him. He looked up and saw Ivy Joyce, her face deathly pale, hurrying toward him.

"What are you doing here?"

His tone was as cold as ice, devoid of any of its former warmth.

"Luke, I... I missed you."

Ivy Joyce’s eyes reddened, and tears welled up. She put on a pitiful, heart-wrenching act.

’If I just act weak and coquettish like before and coax Luke into a good mood, he’ll never really make me pay back that hundred million!’

Luke Lockwood grabbed her arm and roughly dragged her into the car. The door slammed shut with a BANG, and the confined space instantly filled with a suffocating, hostile energy.

The next second, his large hand shot out and clamped around Ivy Joyce’s neck, the force so great it nearly cut off her breathing instantly.

"Thanks to you, not only have I been stripped of all my positions and thrown out of my own company, I have nothing now!"

Luke Lockwood’s voice was low and sinister, his eyes as terrifying as a demon’s. "I haven’t even come looking for you to settle the score, and yet you’ve delivered yourself to my doorstep, seeking death!"

Ivy Joyce’s face turned purple. She clawed desperately at his wrist, struggling with all her might as her vision began to blacken.

Just as she thought she was about to be choked to death, Luke Lockwood’s hand suddenly released her.

Fresh air rushed frantically into her lungs.

Choking, suffocation, and fear washed over her all at once. Ivy Joyce slumped onto the seat, bent over and coughing violently, barely able to breathe.

When she had recovered slightly, she grabbed Luke Lockwood’s arm. "How is that possible? You’re the President of Zephyr! What right do they have to dismiss you?"

Luke Lockwood shook her hand off, his eyes dark and gloomy.

’Zenith bought the fifty percent of shares that were in Vesper’s hands. Add that to the five percent from the minority shareholders, and my forty-five percent leaves me with no say at all.’

’Kyle Zimmerman had been targeting me for a long time, unhappy with me sitting in the President’s seat at Zephyr. He was always looking for the right opportunity to oust me, and now he’s finally found it.’

’And it was all because of this idiot, Ivy Joyce, who handed him the opportunity on a silver platter.’

Luke Lockwood’s eyes turned sharp. He had no patience left. He reached out, grabbed a handful of her hair at the back of her head, and yanked it hard.

Ivy Joyce cried out in pain. Her neck was forced taut as he violently pulled her toward him, rendering her unable to move.

"Didn’t you say you loved me? What are you afraid of?"

Luke Lockwood leaned close to her ear, his voice bone-chillingly cold.

Ivy Joyce cowered, her shoulders trembling. ’He looks so sinister and terrifying right now,’ she thought.

"Luke, this is all Vesper Grayson’s fault! If she was going to help you, she should have seen it through to the end. She knew Zephyr and Zenith were mortal enemies, so she deliberately sold her shares to Zenith just to see you lose everything and end up destitute."

’If it weren’t for Vesper Grayson, they wouldn’t be in this mess.’

’My baby wouldn’t be gone.’

’Looking around, Luke Lockwood is still the best option she has.’

’I can’t let him go.’

Luke Lockwood’s eyes were bloodshot. He sneered, "Even now, you’re still trying to drive a wedge between me and her. How could I have been so bewitched by a bitch like you that I hurt Vesper, the one who loved me most?"

Ivy Joyce shook her head and shrieked, "She doesn’t love you anymore! Luke, accept it! I’m the only one in this world who truly cares about you!"

Just then, the wail of a police siren cut through the air.

The car door was yanked open, and two police officers seized her arms from either side.

A cold, official voice spoke.

"Ivy Joyce," one officer said, holding up an arrest warrant, each word clear and precise. "You are suspected of hiring three men with the intent to gang-rape Vesper Grayson, which constitutes attempted rape. You were previously released on bail due to pregnancy. As the pregnancy has been terminated, you are now under immediate arrest in accordance with the law!"

Ivy Joyce’s face went ashen. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed to the ground, looking pleadingly at Luke Lockwood.

"Luke, save me! I don’t want to go to jail..."

Luke Lockwood watched impassively as the police forcibly lifted Ivy Joyce and led her away.

As he drove past a public phone booth, he pulled the car over.

He used the public phone to call Vesper Grayson.

...

Meanwhile, Vesper Grayson was at her new store’s temporary office, conducting in-person interviews with job applicants.

She had to make sure every single detail was perfect.

When her phone rang, she glanced at it calmly. Seeing it was a call from Ashmore, she switched it to silent.

She was busy until around four o’clock before she finally called the number back.

"Hello, I had a missed call from this number?"

"I’m the owner of the phone booth. A handsome guy with a deathly scowl did call you earlier, but he’s gone now."

"Alright, I understand."

Although she didn’t know for sure who it was, Luke Lockwood’s image subconsciously surfaced in her mind.

She looked down at her phone and saw a message that Dolly Hughes had sent her two hours ago.

[Sister Vesper, I heard Ivy Joyce made a bad investment behind President Lockwood’s back and got scammed, causing the company to lose a hundred million. At the meeting, President Lockwood was impeached by Zenith’s representative, Kyle Zimmerman, and removed from his position as president.]

Vesper Grayson called Dolly Hughes, and the call connected quickly.

"Sister Vesper?"

"Luke Lockwood holds fifty percent of the company’s shares. How could he be dismissed so easily?"

’Even if I sold my fifty percent to Zenith, their holdings would just be equal. A single mistake shouldn’t be enough to get him dismissed this quickly.’

"I heard from Harold Warner that President Lockwood felt bad for the partners who started the company with him, so he gave them five percent of the shares. But in the meeting this afternoon, those same partners all stabbed him in the back and supported Mr. Zimmerman’s motion to dismiss..."

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