Urban Plundering: I Corrupted The System! - Chapter 257

Chapter 257: Owning Her Future
Cassidy leaned back, crossing one leg over the other, her Louboutin heel bouncing lightly against the air. Her expression? Casual. Amused, even. Like she wasn’t about to drop a multi-million-dollar offer on the table. Claire sat beside her, equally poised, but with that dangerous corporate lawyer energy—the kind that made old money assholes sweat bullets.

And Callista? She sat across from them, her posture perfect. Back straight, hands folded, eyes sharp. This was her domain they were sitting in, after all.

Even if NovaCast was on its last breath, she was still the queen of this castle.

For a second, no one spoke. Just a long, calculating silence. Posturing. The unspoken language of business.

Cassidy smiled, slow and easy. “So. Let’s cut the bullshit.”

Callista didn’t flinch. Good.

“We’re buying NovaCast as we’ve already discussed so we should proceed.”

A beat.

Callista tilted her head slightly, just enough to acknowledge what was said—but not enough to give anything away. “I see,” she said smoothly. “And I assume this is a takeover, not a bailout since you made sure the name was off the building before you arrived?”

“Bingo,” Cassidy said, grinning. “Anyway, in any way the falling baby giant needs a new spine, and we just so happen to have a titanium one.”

Callista exhaled through her nose—not quite a laugh, but close. “So that’s how we’re playing it?”

Cassidy shrugged. “I like you, Callista. You built this from scratch. You’re smart, you’re cutthroat, and—unlike most people in this industry—you actually give a damn. That’s why I’m not here to push you out.”

Callista’s fingers tapped against the armrest. A small tell. She was listening.

“You’ll still be in charge,” Cassidy continued. “Same power, same influence, but with something better than survival mode. A fucking war chest. We put real money behind NovaCast, and you make it a beast. That’s our proposition!”

“And in return?” Callista asked, voice smooth.

“Infinity Holdings takes 90% majority ownership.”

That was the moment. That was the hinge point. The words settled between them like a knife on the table. Claire, ever the silent executioner, simply adjusted her watch—unbothered.

Callista smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. This was the real game now.

“And I get?”

Cassidy let the moment breathe before delivering the hook. “10% of course, we only need two majority shareholders and so if we’re taking 90% you automatically own the rest without even having to pay a thing but just do you own good damn job. We don’t care about the money, we only care about this agency. As long as you can put it wtew we want it to be, the rest is good!”

Silence.

Then—a quiet chuckle. Callista leaned back, resting her chin on her fingers. “So, you want me to run my own company for you, while holding a minority stake?”

Cassidy exhaled, slow and deliberate, like she was mentally debating whether to be nice or go full corporate psycho. Then she just shrugged. “Yeah, it’s a minority stake. But it’s a damn good one.”

She let the words hang for a second before leaning in slightly, lowering her voice to something just a little too casual.

“Or, y’know, we can own everything.”

Callista didn’t move, but the shift in the air was instant.

Cassidy tilted her head, eyes glinting. “And let’s be real, babe. Given your situation, I don’t have to spell out the part where you don’t exactly have a fuck-ton of choices if we go full ‘burn-it-all-down’ mode.” She let that sink in before flashing a megawatt, real estate-agent-who-definitely-runs-scams smile. “You’d have to sign anyway.”

Callista’s lips pressed together, her fingers tapping once against the armrest.

Then Cassidy leaned back, flipping the energy completely. “But that’s not why we’re here.”

The shift was subtle but effective. The whole ‘I can nuke your entire career, but I won’t’ move? Classic power play.

“We’re giving you a second fucking chance. You get to keep the keys to the agency. So we’re giving you a piece of what you should be losing in exchange for you to run the thing and shove into the throats of those bastards your own way. Clearly you can see I don’t care about anything else but you owning the industry. You won’t find a better deal. Hell, you won’t even find a deal.”

Callista didn’t deny it. Because it was true.

10% wasn’t a joke. In this industry, founders got chewed up, spat out, and demoted to ‘consultants’ with a fancy title and a glass of overpriced whiskey. Cassidy and Infinity Holdings were offering her something real. Ownership. Legacy.

And Callista knew it.

They were being generous. Too generous. Before they’d walked in, she hadn’t even expected 2%. The fact that they were handing her 10% on a silver fucking platter meant one thing.

They were tying her to the agency. Not as an owner—but as the face.

And she welcomed it.

The truth was, this deal wasn’t gonna leave this room. No press releases. No headlines. No champagne-popping bullshit. To the world, NovaCast would still be hers. But the real game? It belonged to Infinity Holdings.

And Callista? She could live with that.

Because let’s be real—before this, she had jack shit. And now? Now, she had something even the two-faced execs who ran from the agency couldn’t ‘ve offered.

A real fucking backer.

And for the first time in months, she actually felt like she won.

Cassidy watched the way the woman’s fingers tapped one, two, three times before she finally spoke. “I need guarantees.”

“You’ll have a contract,” Claire interjected, her voice carrying that deadly, clean efficiency. “Power, control over the agency’s creative direction, veto authority in key executive decisions. And, of course—full operational command. With a few twists.”

Callista hummed. “And my people?”

Cassidy spread her hands. “Loyal ones stay. Dead weight? You already know what to do.”

That got a real smile out of Callista.

For the first time, Cassidy saw it. That fire. The shark-like calculation in Callista’s eyes as she measured the deal not by sentiment but by opportunity.

“You want a fight?” Callista asked, voice low.

Cassidy grinned. “I want a fucking empire.”

And that was it.

A slow, knowing nod from Callista. A handshake that sealed millions of dollars and an unspoken pact.

NovaCast wasn’t dying anymore.

It was about to rise from the ashes like a phoenix with fresh Botox and a grudge, ready to fuck up the entire industry. New branding, a powerhouse backer, a killer strategy sharper than a divorce lawyer’s instincts—and more she couldn’t even imagine yet.

Infinity Holdings didn’t feel like short-game players. Not with all the money they were about to dump into this place.

They weren’t here to do a cheap ass makeover; they were about to tear down walls, slap on marble countertops, and install gold-plated espresso machines for the fun of it.

Cassidy leaned back, smirking like she just bought a whole neighborhood and evicted a couple of CEOs for sport. “Welcome to the future, babe.”

Callista exhaled. Yeah.

NovaCast was about to be a whole new beast.