Chapter 6 - The Cornered Rat
By Thursday afternoon, the pressure cooker had reached its boiling point.
I was sitting in my office reviewing code updates when my phone buzzed with an incoming FaceTime call.
The caller ID read: *Evan Pierce.*
I stared at the screen for a moment before swiping to answer.
Evan’s face appeared, but he looked completely unraveled. His hair was disheveled, his eyes were bloodshot, and he was sitting in the front seat of his car parked somewhere on a downtown street.
“Are you insane?” Evan screamed the moment the connection went through. “Have you completely lost your mind, Claire? Federal investigators are freezing our bank accounts! Vanguard just cut all ties with us! My career is completely destroyed!”
“You destroyed your career the moment you decided to steal from the company I built, Evan,” I replied, spinning lazily in my executive chair.
“I was going to share it with you!” Evan yelled, his voice cracking with desperation. “We were going to retire in the Mediterranean! I did it for *us*!”
“For *us*?” I let out a sharp, cold laugh. “You did it for yourself and the woman you married three days before our wedding while eating my wedding cake in spirit. Don't drag me into your delusions.”
“Please, Claire… drop the charges,” Evan whimpered, his tough-guy facade completely melting away into pathetic pleading. “Please. Call off your lawyer. We can settle this privately. I’ll sign over everything. Just… don't let them put me in prison.”
“Prison?” I raised an eyebrow. “Oh, Evan. That’s not up to me anymore. The moment you stole corporate funds and conspired with Jonathan Vance, it stopped being a civil matter.”
“Claire, listen to me!” Evan shouted, panic rising in his chest. “Vanguard set us up! Jonathan Vance used us! He promised he would protect us if the deal went south! He’s the one pulling the strings!”
“Then I suggest you tell that to the federal prosecutor,” I said softly. “Because he’ll be arriving at your apartment in about ten minutes.”
May you like
I hung up the phone.
***
