Beauty and Beast Inc

Chapter 27

 I stalled the car outside the mansion gates and typed in the code, Elias's birthday, and drove straight in, hands shaking on the car wheel. As soon as I had parked Mrs. Potts, Codsworth, and Lumiere came running down the steps toward me. Mrs. Potts enveloped me in a massive hug which I returned, holding onto her tightly as I held back tears.

Codsworth and Lumiere looked exhausted but greeted me with smiles and hugs as well before leading me inside to the kitchen. We sat down around the table while Mrs. Potts prepared some tea and I sat back, waiting for the news.

     "Well? What happened?" I asked Lumiere, trying to prepare myself for the worst.

     "Well, Gaston turned in some rather loose and barely provable evidence that Elias had been stealing money from other companies and using for himself, and that he was stealing from his employees and masking it with the benefits. There's hardly any evidence to prove this but our stocks are falling and people are panicking, its a mess," he explained, rubbing his face wearily.      "I've been on the phone nonstop with our partner companies explaining to them whats happened and most of them have been pretty understanding much to my surprise so the stocks are slowly getting better. Elias is still in jail, they won't let him out, but our lawyer is out there ready to tear the building down to get to him."

I nodded, taking it all in. Elias stealing? Now everyone knew he had a bad temper but he would never take from other people, much less his workers or his partners. Beast Inc and Elias himself were famous for the amazing benefits their employees got. "What is Gaston saying about all this?"

Lumiere sighed. "His lawyer is saying that while he was away in Paris he was secretly conducting meetings and creating offshore bank accounts which is where the money is hiding. It's just so outrageous. And the judge wants to get this over with so the trial is in just a few days."

    I scoffed. "I was with Elias in Paris the entire time! And even before that, I can prove everything Gaston is saying is false!"

    Lumiere gave me a smile. "I know, that's why you're our key witness."

    I stood up with a small amount of unnecessary force, pushing the chair back with a loud screech. "Then we've got to get to work, come on. I have all the papers with me in the car and I still have access to Elias's bank accounts and the company server. We can do this."

 All three of them looked at me and Lumiere smiled and seemed to gain a little bit more energy back in him as she stood. "Let's get our boy back."

**********

We worked for days, getting more cups of coffee than hours of sleep, and instead of driving back to the city I just slept back at the house in my old room as if I had never left. I called my father and he understood completely and promised he would be fine without me while I sorted through this mess. I slept and worked and ate on in a daze for days until the trial.

   On the trial day, when I had everything prepared, I was dressed and ready to go hours before we were going to leave. Everyone was sleeping so I wandered around the house and found myself at Elias's bedroom. I opened the door and walked in, not surprised to see that it was still a mess but I was taken aback at the painting hanging above his bed that I had found in the basement, and there it was hanging up. I walked over to it and looked up at the figures embracing and all I wanted at that moment was to hug Elias. I just wanted to know he was okay, and I wanted him to know that I still cared about him.

I walked over to the windows to peer outside when I noticed a wrinkled and stained piece of paper laying on his bed. Curious, I picked it up and it took me a few seconds before realizing I was holding the Rose Contract. My eyes sped over the lines and right at the end, the date the contract would be null and Elias would have to hand over his company, was our last night in Paris. I sat down and sighed, thinking how much more pain I had caused him by leaving. That those men who had been glancing at us all night were the men who had created the contract. It was pitiful and it was heartbreaking and it was all my fault.