Chapter 7 - THE ULTIMATUM“That... that was a trick!” Brenda stammered, her voice cracking as she took a panicked step backward. “The court documents are legal! You can’t just—!”
“In the state of Washington, I can do whatever I damn well please inside my own castle,” I interrupted, my voice dropping into a low, predatory register. I stepped forward, looming over her until she was forced to look up at me with genuine terror. “And as for the trust fund you’re trying to steal? Let me enlighten you, Brenda.”
I snapped my fingers. From the shadows of the hallway, Marcus stepped forward, handing me a thick manila folder stamped with red confidential seals.
I opened it and tossed a single sheet of paper onto the floor at Brenda’s feet.
“That is an forensic audit of your personal and business finances in Portland,” I said smoothly. “Your boutique real estate firm has been operating under massive insolvency for three years. You’ve been using your stepdaughter’s medical hardship as a cover to siphon funds from dormant escrow accounts.”
Brenda stared down at the paper, her knees visibly trembling.
“If you walk out those front doors right now, get back into your vans, and leave Seattle tonight, I will burn this audit and pretend you never existed,” I continued, my eyes narrowing into cold slits. “If you take one more step toward my family, I will personally see to it that you spend the next twenty years behind bars in a federal penitentiary where white-collar criminals go to rot.”
Brenda looked at her armed thugs, but the men had already quietly stepped back toward the door, recognizing a losing battle when they saw one.
Without a single word, Brenda turned on her heel, stumbled over her own designer heels in her haste, and practically threw herself out the front doors into the pouring rain.
The heavy oak doors slammed shut behind her, locked automatically by the estate’s automated security grid.
I let out a long, slow breath, running a hand through my hair.
Footsteps approached softly from the grand staircase. I turned around.
Emily stood on the landing, wearing a simple wool sweater, holding Lila in her arms. The little girl had fallen back asleep against her shoulder. Emily’s eyes were wide, shining with unshed tears.
“You... you just banished a shark with a phone call,” she whispered.
“Brenda was a minnow,” I replied, walking toward the stairs and climbing them slowly until I stood right in front of Emily. “The only shark I care about is standing right here in front of me.”
May you like
Emily managed a weak, watery smile.
“Come,” I said, gently taking her hand. Her fingers were still cold, but as I intertwined my fingers with hers, she squeezed back. “Let’s get Lila back to sleep. Then, you and I need to talk about the rest of our lives.”
