My Anti-hero Fairy System-Chapter 84. Ashley’s Place

"I don’t understand your question, Dad. Are you asking why I did my job while my brother couldn’t muster an ounce of seriousness in front of the shareholders?" she asked, staring into his eyes, trying to gauge his reaction.

"You two were supposed to work together, as a united front, to create something great," Rudy said. "Instead, you chose to go off on your own. That’s how you made your brother look bad."

Ashley stared at him in disbelief. "So what you’re really saying is that you expected me to do all the work while my brother took the credit."

"Would that be such a bad thing?" Rudy countered. "He’s your brother, the heir to all of this, and now, thanks to you, the shareholders have lost confidence in him."

Ashley’s stomach twisted at the confirmation of what she had long suspected: her father never wanted her to succeed him.

"So you want Travis to run this company, even though he has never shown any real interest in it?" she asked. "What about me?"

"You can be his right-hand man, or woman," Rudy said dismissively. "The CEO of Wesley Incorporated can never be you. It just can’t. I need you to accept that and know your place."

Ashley clenched her jaw, barely containing her frustration. "You expect me to work my ass off just to be second to my brother—a brother who doesn’t even want this job? Do you even hear yourself?"

"Your brother will take the job, whether he likes it or not," Rudy said, standing up and patting her on the back like he hadn’t just invalidated everything she had worked for. "And as his sweet, smart sister, you’ll help him however you can. That’s how it should be." He turned to leave.

Ashley’s nails dug into her palms. "Dad, if I were a man and Travis wasn’t taking this seriously, would you still make him your heir?"

Rudy paused but didn’t turn around. "That’s a different ball game, honey," he said as he walked toward the door.

Ashley clenched her fists. That was it. That was the confirmation she needed. The only reason she wasn’t being considered for CEO was because she was a woman.

"Well, Dad," she said, voice sharp with defiance, "I’m not doing any of that."

Rudy halted mid-step. "What?" He turned back to her, as if he hadn’t heard her correctly.

"I’m not going to be the sweet, smart sister to my brother. I’m not going to work hard only for him to take all the glory."

Rudy’s eyes darkened. "If you’re not going to do what’s required of you, then you might as well not work here anymore."

Ashley let out a short, humorless laugh. "Are you kicking me out?"

"If you’re not going to support my plans, then yes, I think you should leave," Rudy said with finality.

Ashley exhaled sharply, shaking her head. "You seem to forget," she said, stepping closer, "I have shares in this company. Shares that Grandpa gave me."

Rudy’s expression flickered, but she didn’t let him speak.

"He knew I was the right one for the job. He saw it. But you? You let your misogyny blind you. So no, Dad, I won’t leave. I could walk away, I have plenty of options, executive job offers. But I won’t leave."

She leaned in, her voice deadly calm.

"And mark my words... Travis will never be the CEO of this company. Whether you like it or not."

Without waiting for his response, she turned and walked out, leaving Rudy standing alone in the boardroom.

—---

—---

Cara returned from her lunch break and headed straight to the staff locker room to change into her waitress uniform. As she pulled her shirt over her head, the door swung open, and Farrah walked in.

"That was a really long lunch break," Farrah teased. "Where did you go?"

Cara smiled as she adjusted her uniform. "I went to my other workplace."

"The Hemridge Globe?" Farrah asked, raising a brow.

"Yep," Cara confirmed. "I’ll be working there full-time starting next week."

"Wow! Congratulations! I’m so happy for you," Farrah said, beaming.

Cara grinned. "Thanks." Then, with a playful glint in her eyes, she added, "So, how’s your father doing? Has he burned anything down yet?"

Farrah rolled her eyes. "Shut up. And no, he hasn’t."

"But he could," Cara teased. "Anyway, how’s he coping with Reverend Newton’s death?"

Farrah sighed as they stepped out of the locker room. "He’s still grieving. And the scandal isn’t helping. He thinks the whole thing was fabricated by supernaturals to make the Reverend look bad. He refuses to see it any other way."

Cara shook her head. "Hopefully, sooner or later, he’ll realize the Reverend was actually an asshole."

Before Farrah could respond, Cara walked off toward a customer, leaving the conversation hanging.

—-------

The afternoon passed quickly. By the time Cara finished her shift, Farrah had already gone home. Now dressed in her casual clothes, Cara was ready to leave for the day, but first, she wanted to talk to Jackie.

She made her way to Jackie’s office and, without bothering to knock, pushed the door open.

Jackie looked up from her desk, a smirk tugging at her lips. "What are you still doing here?"

Cara stepped inside, closing the door behind her. "I just wanted to talk. To know where we stand."

Jackie set down the document she’d been reading and leaned back in her chair. "I might not love that you want to see what else is out there, but I understand it. And for now, I’m okay with it."

Cara crossed the room and kissed Jackie, deep and slow. When they finally pulled apart, Jackie exhaled sharply.

"We can’t do this here. Not again," she murmured, eyes dark with warning. "Let me wrap things up, and I’ll meet you outside."

Cara grinned. "You got it, babe. See you outside."

She gave Jackie one last glance before slipping out of the office.

—----

Outside, the night breeze was cool against her skin. Cara leaned against the diner’s brick wall, breathing in the crisp air as she waited.

Three minutes passed.

Then, a presence loomed behind her.

The scent hit her first, that is not Jackie.

Cara turned swiftly, her muscles tensing.

Standing before her was Wilhelmina, the vampire from last night.

She must be here to attack me, Cara thought, bracing herself.

Wilhelmina’s lips curled into a predatory smirk, her sharp gaze raking over Cara like she was nothing more than prey.

"Well, well," she purred. "Now that you don’t have Joana protecting you, I’m going to suck you dry, you nasty bitch."