Chapter 2 - The Taste of Karma
The grand dining room felt like it had been plunged into an ice bath.
Daniel stumbled backward, his legs suddenly giving out as he collapsed into his ornate dining chair.
"That... that is impossible!" Daniel gasped, his chest heaving as he stared at the watermarked deed on the table.
"My investors are a private firm out of Chicago!"
"Yes," I replied calmly, buttoning my worn jacket.
"Vanguard Holdings."
"I bought out your primary creditors three years ago when you started defaulting on your loans."
"You have been operating on my charity, Daniel."
Evelyn let out a high-pitched sob, burying her face in her expensive silk napkin.
Sofia immediately turned to Lion, her manicured nails digging fiercely into his tailored suit jacket.
"Lion, tell me this is a joke!" Sofia demanded, her voice shrill and desperate.
"Tell me your father is just making this up!"
Lion slowly stood up, his entire body trembling violently.
"Dad..." Lion whispered, his voice cracking with emotion.
"I didn't know... I swear to God I didn't know."
"I know you didn't know I was wealthy, Lion," I corrected him, my heart aching with every word.
"But you knew I was your father."
"You knew I raised you, fed you, and broke my back to put you through the best engineering schools."
"And yet, you sat in complete silence while they treated me like absolute garbage."
Tears welled up in Lion’s eyes as the crushing weight of his cowardice finally hit him.
Daniel suddenly lunged forward across the table, desperately trying to grab my hand.
"Sir! Mr. Vanguard! Please, this was all a terrible misunderstanding!" Daniel pleaded, his arrogant tone completely erased.
"I was just making a harmless joke to break the ice for the guests!"
"We respect you immensely, I swear it!"
I looked down at Daniel with a mixture of pity and absolute disgust.
"A joke is only funny when everyone is laughing, Daniel."
"You wanted to show these people how the world works."
"So, allow me to give you a very real lesson."
I signaled to the restaurant manager, who had been watching the scene unfold from the corner of the room with wide eyes.
The manager immediately rushed over, bowing his head respectfully to me.
"Sir, what are your orders?" the manager asked nervously.
"Clear the main table," I commanded, my voice echoing off the high ceilings.
May you like
"The Morgan family is no longer welcome in my establishment."
"And tell the chef to cancel their main courses."
