Chapter 230: Their Decision

"Alright. One by one. We’ll go around the table. Speak your vote clearly and say whether you agree to it or not."The air in the room became filled with tension after Gray said those words. For a moment, no one moved first. Then the gray-haired man at the far left leaned forward, his hands folded firmly on the table.

As the oldest, he thought that it was just right for him to start first.

"I vote for no," he said straightly without any hesitation. "The risk is too great."

A soft murmur echoed around as people reacted to the answer. Then, it became silent as the woman beside him spoke.

"I vote yes," she said. Her tone was calm and soft. "We can’t grow if we keep fearing risk."

The younger man at the far end didn’t wait a second.

"I vote for yes too. Absolutely yes," he said, his eyes bright.

That brought the count to two yes, and one no.

The older woman who had spoken with doubt earlier shook her head.

"No," she muttered. "I can’t trust Everett’s terms."

Two and two.

The young man beside her leaned forward. His tone was more practical than passionate.

"Yes. We’ll need his influence if we want to rise faster. I say yes."

Three votes for yes and two votes for no.

All eyes landed on the younger woman, the one who had worried about their store’s identity early on. She bit her lip, hesitating for a few seconds. Her pen tapped lightly against the table before she finally whispered her answer.

"...No. Not yet."

That was three and three.

The boardroom held its breath as they realized that their answers were tied so far. That was already six votes cast. All eyes now turned to the last member. It was the man who was seated closest to Gray. He was also one of the oldest in the room.

He leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed loosely. For a moment, he said nothing. He knew that his answer would be the most important here. It would be the deciding point of this meeting.

And so, everyone waited patiently for him to make up his mind.

No one pressured or dared to talk. They just stared at him with expectant eyes.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he let out a slow breath.

"I don’t like Everett. I don’t trust men like him. But..." His gaze shifted to Gray. "I do trust you. If you believe you can manage him, then I’ll vote yes."

The silence that followed was heavy.

With his answer, that only meant one thing.

Four votes yes.

Three votes no.

The decision was made.

"That means..." Gray nodded slowly as he looked at everyone’s face. "We accept Everett’s offer."

Some members looked relieved, others uneasy, but no one argued further. It was decided fairly, so that means the matter was closed.

The boardroom stayed quiet for a moment longer. The weight of the decision is still hanging in the air.

Gray let them have their silence before he finally straightened his folder and spoke again to say his last few words.

"Then it’s settled. From this moment, we move forward with Everett’s offer. It won’t be easy, and there will be risks... but we’ll face them together."

He looked around the table as he said that, making sure every pair of eyes met his.

No matter what side they had voted for, they were all part of this.

"May the gods help us all. Everett is not a man to play around with." The gray-haired man leaned back in his chair with a quiet sigh. He rubbed his temple with two fingers but didn’t protest further.

"Don’t worry, we’ll be fine," The woman beside him, who had voted yes, showed her sweetest smile.

"This is it. This is the turning point." The young man at the far end couldn’t hide his grin.

Across the table, the older woman who had voted no pressed her lips tightly together. She looked at Gray with wary eyes.

"Just... promise us that we won’t have any loss here."

"I’ll try my very best," Gray replied solemnly. He can’t promise anything as the future still looked uncertain in his eyes.

Still, that seemed enough for her. She nodded slowly and leaned back, though the unease in her face didn’t fade.

The younger woman who had hesitated the longest tapped her pen one last time and sighed. "Then let’s just hope the risk pays off," she muttered. "For all our sakes."

The last man, the one who broke the tie in their decision, didn’t say anything else. He just gave Gray a single nod of trust. That alone was enough to tell Gray that his support wasn’t for Everett, but it was for him.

Gray’s heart warmed because of it. But at the same time, the responsibility he had to carry weighed him. He needed this project to be as smooth as possible. There were too many people expecting from him on this one.

"Thank you for your honesty today. I know not all of you are certain about this, but what matters now is that we move as one. The meeting is adjourned." Gray smiled at everyone.

With his announcement, the chairs moved and the members rose one by one. Some left quickly, while others stayed in small groups. They were murmuring quietly about the future, hope and unease mixed in their voices.

"Let’s just pray Everett doesn’t swallow us whole."

"Maybe this is what we need."

"Either way, no turning back now."

Gray tightened his grip on the folder as he walked passed the board members. He thanked everyone for joining. Mara walked beside him as they made their way out of the boardroom.

’There was no turning back now...’ That much was true.

The hallway outside the boardroom was quieter than the storm they had just left behind the room. Their footsteps echoed against the polished floor as they walked side by side toward the elevators.

Gray loosened his tie slightly, exhaling through his nose. Mara’s eyes gazed toward him. She smiled and patted his back softly

"That went better than what I initially expected," she murmured.

Gray gave a short chuckle, though it held no real humor on it.

"It was, but it’s still hard."

Mara cracked a faint smile.

"I guess nothing is really easy when it comes to business.

"That’s quite true," Gray could only sigh as he pressed the elevator down toward his office’s floor.

They waited there for a few seconds in silence before the doors slid open with a soft chime. They stepped in, and the air inside was cool. As the door of the elevator closed, they proceeded to go directly to Gray’s office.

It was already close to lunchtime, but for them, work comes first.

"We need to move fast," Gray informed her as they settled in the office. "We must inform Conrad today."

Mara’s eyes widened. "You want to inform Conrad immediately about it?"

"Yeah. Could you reach out to his secretary? Tell her we’re ready to set the next meeting." Gray’s eyes shifted toward her.

"I’ll handle it then," Mara said without hesitation. She adjusted her blazer and pulled out her phone, already typing a note to herself.

"Do you want me to set it for as soon as possible?"

"As soon as possible," Gray confirmed. "We need to close this as soon as possible."

"Understood," Mara said.

Gray sighed and shook his head.

’I guess there’s no turning back now.’ He secretly thought to himself.

Mara stepped aside with her phone. She was already dialing Conrad’s secretary. Her voice lowered as she began the polite conversation.

Meanwhile, Gray just sat on his chair. It was the benefit of having a secretary. Mara was there to do things for him.

He opened his laptop and opened a blank Word file. He quickly typed notes in there.

- Land Operation

- Construction Materials

- Permits and paperwork

- Miscellaneous costs

There were things that they needed to take note of now and focus on. He knew that they would get busier as days passed by.

Still, it was a good reason to be busy.

When that was done, Gray opened his browser and started searching quietly. He was looking for construction firms in the city that had good standing and contractors with good reputations.

He scrolled through their names, websites, and reviews. He was making quick notes beside each one.

He knew that he could ask Conrad about this. Putting aside their titles and work, Conrad had been a good elder to him. He was also experienced, so he knew he would provide valuable input about his choice.

Behind him, Mara’s voice was still calm and professional. She was already talking to Conrad’s secretary.

"Yes, Mr. Everett’s schedule is understood. We’ll adjust accordingly. Please let us know the earliest time available. We’ll wait for your update."

After saying those words, Mara said her goodbye and eyed Gray.

She smiled widely and nodded.

"It’s done. We’ll just need to wait. The secretary said the earliest available time they have is in 2 days.