Chapter 10 - The New Hierarchy"Evelyn?"
It was my father's voice. Gone was the booming, patriarchal authority that had terrorized my childhood. In its place was a broken, desperate whisper.
"Evelyn, please... your mother hasn't stopped crying. Julian has locked himself in his apartment. The tabloids are camping outside our house. People are calling off Dad's business contracts. We're ruined."
I stood by the floor-to-ceiling glass window of my new corner office, looking down at the microscopic ants scurrying across the city streets far below.
"That's unfortunate, Dad," I said, my voice completely devoid of warmth.
"Evelyn, we're family!" he pleaded, his voice cracking with genuine panic. "You can't just destroy your own flesh and blood over a... over a misunderstanding! We need help. We need financial support to settle the vendor lawsuits!"
I took a slow sip of my morning espresso, savoring the rich, bitter taste.
"Family helps family, Dad," I quoted back to him, echoing the exact words he had used to bully me into funding Julian’s disaster three months ago. "Isn't that what you always said?"
"Evelyn, please name your terms—"
"My terms are very simple," I interrupted, my tone hardening into steel. "First, a public retraction and apology published in the Sunday Chronicle admitting that Julian and you lied about my character and contribution. Second, Julian gets a real job—starting at the bottom of one of my company's warehouses, working sixty-hour weeks to pay back every single cent with interest."
"And... and if we don't?" Dad whispered, the fight completely drained out of him.
"Then you can explain to your creditors why you're sharing a bankruptcy cell with your golden boy," I said smoothly. "I hear federal prison has a wonderful family discount."
I didn't wait for his answer. I tapped the red button, ending the call, and tossed the phone onto my pristine mahogany desk.
May you like
Outside, the sun broke through the morning clouds, bathing the Manhattan skyline in a brilliant, golden light.
I sat down in my new leather executive chair, spun around to face the city I now commanded, and smiled.
