Chapter 5 - THE CONTRACT OF DOOMRobert stood frozen as if struck by lightning. "What... what did you just say?"
"I said no, Dad," I said, my voice echoing clearly through the lobby. "Parker Logistics will not be receiving the contract."
"Emily, you can't do this!" Evelyn screamed, dropping all pretenses of kindness. "You ungrateful little brat! After everything your father has done for you—"
"Everything he's done?" I turned on Evelyn with razor-sharp intensity. "He ignored me for ten years! He let you treat me like a maid in my own house! He made me sleep in the unheated attic while Madison got the master bedroom! And today, he physically threw me out into a storm!"
The surrounding crowd of doctors, professors, and students stopped walking. Heads turned. Whispers swept through the foyer like wildfire.
"Is that the girl's family?" a senior doctor whispered nearby. "They threw her out in the rain before the ceremony?"
"Disgusting," another professor muttered. "And now they're begging her for a business contract?"
Robert’s face turned pale as he heard the crowd's judgment. His reputation—the very thing he prized above all else—was crumbling in real-time.
"Emily, please... don't do this in public," Robert begged, sweat glistening on his forehead. "If Parker Logistics doesn't get this contract, the bank will seize our house! We’ll lose everything!"
"Then I suggest you start packing," I replied coldly. "Because I’ve already signed the contract with Harrison-Global Logistics."
Before Robert could react, Sir Arthur Harrison stepped out from behind the security team, accompanied by two corporate lawyers carrying leather briefcases.
"Is this man bothering you, Dr. Parker?" Sir Arthur asked smoothly, stepping between me and my father.
Robert recognized Sir Arthur immediately. His eyes almost bulged out of his head. "S—Sir Arthur Harrison! Sir, please, I am Robert Parker, owner of Parker Logistics! There’s been a massive misunderstanding—"
"There is no misunderstanding, Mr. Parker," Sir Arthur cut him off with ice-cold precision. "I witnessed your conduct outside this venue today. A man who lacks basic humanity toward his own flesh and blood cannot be trusted with the safety and transport of delicate medical supplies."
Sir Arthur turned to his lead lawyer. "Mr. Vance, notify the Jefferson Health Board immediately. Parker Logistics is officially blacklisted from all present and future bidding across our entire international network."
"Right away, Sir Arthur," the lawyer replied, pulling out his tablet.
"No! No, wait! Please!" Robert dropped to his knees right there on the marble floor of the lobby, grabbing at Sir Arthur’s trousers. "Sir, I have debts! My whole life is tied up in this! Emily, tell him! Tell him to stop!"
I looked down at my father kneeling at my feet—the same man who had stood over me two hours ago, sneering that I was "just an assistant."
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"You told me outside that I belonged in the rain, Dad," I said, my voice unwavering. "Now, you're going to have to learn how to survive the storm you created."
I turned on my heel and walked toward the heavy glass exit doors. Behind me, Evelyn was screaming hysterically, Madison was sobbing as onlookers filmed the entire scene on their phones, and Robert remained on his knees, staring blankly at the floor as his empire shattered into dust.
