You Want My Grandma’s $8 BILLION Inheritance DREAM ON! SCUMBAG, Watch Your Empire COLLAPSE Overnight! Chapter 16
The instant the elevator doors slid shut, my phone buzzed.
A message from Rachel.
[Evie, good news. The Financial Crimes Unit has officially opened a criminal investigation, and the District Attorney’s Office has taken over the case. Their primary focus is the forged $100 million guaranteed loan, which they’re treating as bank fraud investigation.]
[Also, the police have formally accepted your criminal complaint for aggravated assault. The case is now under active investigation.]
I replied:
[Release the New York waterfront redevelopment story.]
[Are you sure? Once that goes public, Langford Properties’ stock will crash.]
[Do it.]
Three minutes later, Rachel sent back a single word.
[Done.]
At eight that evening, a major New York news outlet published an investigative report.
Exclusive: Langford Properties’ New York Waterfront Redevelopment Project Suspected of Using a Fraudulent Contractor’s License—No Matching License Found in California Contractors State License Board Database
—
The article was thorough.
The evidence was solid.
It even included screenshots from the official licensing database.
Twenty minutes after publication, it had been shared more than ten thousand times.
An hour later, the California Contractors State License Board released a public statement saying it had taken notice of the report and was opening an immediate investigation.
Two hours later, Langford Properties’ stock plunged another eight percent in after-hours trading.
Three hours later, Alex had sent me seventeen text messages in a row.
The first five were still restrained.
[Was this your doing?]
[What are you trying to accomplish?]
[If you’ve got a problem, take it out on me. Leave the company out of this.]
[There are thousands of employees depending on Langford Properties. Do you want them all to lose their jobs?]
[We can talk.]
The next twelve unraveled fast.
[Evelyn Grant, have you lost your mind?]
—
[Do you even know what you’re doing?]
[If you destroy Langford Properties, how am I supposed to compensate you?]
[Answer your phone!]
[Please.]
I ignored every single one.
The next morning, after breakfast, I opened the financial news.
Langford Properties had opened down another fifteen percent, triggering a temporary trading halt.
In a single night, the company had lost $1.8 billion in market value.
I picked up my phone and texted my private banker.
[Execute the order today. Sell the entire nine percent stake in Langford Properties held through the Evie Sequence account. Place the sell order as soon as trading resumes.]
He replied almost immediately.
[Understood. Based on today’s market price, the sale is expected to generate approximately $400 million. That’s roughly triple your original acquisition cost.]
I set my phone aside.
The four hundred million didn’t matter.
What mattered was what would happen after my nine percent stake hit the market.
—
Langford Properties’ stock would tumble again.
And when it did…
Alex’s shares would no longer be worth five billion dollars.
They might not even be worth two.
Around noon, Julian called.
“Ms. Grant, Mendell—their attorney—contacted me. Alex wants to settle out of court.”
“Terms?”
“He’s offering two hundred million dollars in compensation. He’ll sign a declaration acknowledging that the marriage certificate is invalid. In return, he wants you to withdraw the criminal complaints… and have the media pull the story.”
“Two hundred million.”
I repeated the number slowly.
“Yes.”
“He destroyed my body. He deceived me for seven years. He used my name to fraudulently secure a hundred-million-dollar loan.”
“And now he thinks two hundred million dollars makes everything disappear?”
Julian let out a quiet breath.
“I think he’s testing your bottom line.”
—
“Then tell him this.”
“I don’t accept.”
“My terms haven’t changed.”
“I’ll see him in court.”
“Understood.”
After the call ended, I stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows, looking out over the water.
The harbor surrounding New York shimmered beneath the afternoon sun.
The sea was a deep, endless blue.
Just like my state of mind.
Calm.
Clear.
Cold.