"After all your funding rounds, the final figure comes to eighteen percent."
"Out of the question. Name another term."
Theo cut Bryan off, his eyes burning like he wanted to swallow us both whole. "Do you have any idea what eighteen percent means? That kind of money would bury you."
"And do you have any idea how my mother felt when she put a million and a half on you?"
I fired the words back without missing a beat. "If I take this to court, do you really think eighteen percent would be the end of it?"
"Back then you—"
"Smack!"
I never got to finish. Adam's hand cracked across my face, and he jabbed a vicious finger at me, spitting venom.
"You want me to make sure you don't live to see tomorrow?"
"Heh." Blood trickled from the corner of my mouth as I stared him down, cold. "Just like my mother, abandoned in some little mountain village. On the very day she went into labor. Isn't that right?"
"Stop spewing lies! Theo, get him out of here!"
Letitia was shrieking now, frantic. "I was the one who saw Meryl off when she left. Where does a mountain village come into it? This is extortion. Yes, extortion, plain and simple. I'm calling the police!"
"Go ahead! Call them, then!"
I watched her thumb press against the phone, unable to dial those three numbers no matter how she tried. "Need a hand? Or do you not know the emergency number?"
That was when several shareholders came over. The white-haired elder at the front clapped Theo on the shoulder. "Theo, you need to handle this carefully. Don't air the family's dirty laundry in public."
With that, the white-haired man led the others away.
Adam was on the phone summoning people. Letitia sat beside Theo, the picture of fragile innocence. "You have to believe me. That money really was returned to Meryl. I even set her up in a small city and bought her an apartment."
"Then explain to me what they're doing here."
Theo wasn't asking Letitia. He finished the question and turned to me, brows knitted.
"Meryl always left a good impression on me. We did spend some time together, and yes, I borrowed a sum from her when I was starting out. But none of that gives you the right to wreck my twentieth anniversary gala today."
"You should understand how important this celebration is to the James Group. The stunt you've pulled is going to evaporate at least a billion in value. Can you shoulder that?"
"Theo, you're right!" Letitia found her nerve again. "Throw them behind bars. Teach them a real lesson!"
"Dad, let me handle this one." Adam was itching for it. "Daring to smear my mother as a mistress, you deserve to die for that!"
"Mr. James, is that how you see it too?" I paid the two of them no mind.
Theo's expression shifted through several shades before he finally made his decision.
"Give them some money and get them out of here."
Adam wasn't happy about it, but he dug a checkbook out of his pocket, scrawled a few numbers, and tossed it at my feet.
"There's a million there. Take it and get lost!"
I picked up the check and handed it to Bryan beside me. "Consider it your legal fee."
Bryan took it with a grin, then lifted his phone and pulled up a screen. "My apologies, Mr. James. There's one thing I forgot to mention earlier. We've been livestreaming since the moment we walked in, and the view count has already passed ten million."
"And one more thing. If you really are married to Ms. Mason, then in legal terms, you've committed bigamy."
