Chapter 3 - The Blackmail
The next morning, I refused to answer the thirty-four missed calls from my mother.
Instead, I met Nathan at a discreet coffee shop a few blocks away from the corporate headquarters.
He slid a thick manila folder across the table toward me.
"I pulled your mother's financial records this morning," Nathan said, his voice grave.
I opened the folder and felt the air leave my lungs.
There were massive gambling debts, hidden loans, and second mortgages I knew nothing about.
"My parents are bankrupt," I whispered, staring at a final notice of foreclosure on their house.
"It gets worse," Nathan said, pointing to a highlighted bank transfer.
"Yesterday, an offshore account wired fifty thousand dollars to your mother's primary checking account."
"It was just enough to cover her most aggressive loan shark."
The puzzle pieces snapped together with sickening clarity.
"The person trying to ruin me paid my mother to betray me," I said, feeling sick to my stomach.
"They bought my password for fifty thousand dollars."
I pulled out my phone and finally called my mother back.
She answered on the first ring, crying hysterically.
"Emily, you have to help us, your father is going to leave me!" she sobbed.
"Who paid off your gambling debt, Mom?" I asked, my voice devoid of any emotion.
Dead silence fell over the line.
"Who bought my company password from you?" I demanded, louder this time.
"He said his name was Mr. Smith," she finally whispered, her voice cracking.
"He promised that if I gave him your login, he would clear my debts and make sure Allison got your promotion."
"He said you were arrogant and needed to learn a lesson about sharing."
I hung up the phone without saying goodbye.
My own mother had sold my career to save herself.
May you like
I looked at Nathan.
"We are going to find Mr. Smith, and we are going to destroy him."
