Chapter 2 - The Lockout
The room fell into an absolute, suffocating silence.
Brendan looked between Arthur Pendelton and me, a nervous, confused laugh escaping his lips. "Mr. Pendelton... I think you’ve made a mistake. That’s Cassidy. My ex-wife. She doesn't work for Aethelard. She’s... she’s nobody."
Arthur turned his head slowly, looking at Brendan over the rim of his glasses with a look of profound disgust.
"Mr. Morrison," Arthur said smoothly, "Aethelard Global Holdings is a private conglomerate valued at four point two billion dollars. One hundred percent of the voting shares, physical properties, corporate entities, and executive assets are held by the Vance Private Trust."
Arthur gestured toward me.
"And Ms. Cassidy Vance is the sole living beneficiary and Chairman of the Vance Trust. She owns the building you work in. She owns the chair you were sitting on. She owns the shirt on your back. And as of two minutes ago, she has stripped you of every single thing you possess."
Jessica’s jaw dropped open. "What? Is this a joke? Is this some kind of sick performance?!"
At that exact moment, every phone in the room began ringing simultaneously.
Brendan’s phone buzzed violently against the mahogany table. Diane’s phone chimed from her purse. Brendan’s father, who had been sitting quietly at the end of the table drinking scotch, suddenly froze as his phone vibrated against his thigh.
Brendan picked up his phone. His screen flashed red with dozens of urgent notifications from the Aethelard Corporate HR and Treasury portals.
EMPLOYMENT TERMINATED: BRENDAN MORRISON. REASON: EXECUTIVE MISCONDUCT / PROTOCOL 7. CORPORATE CAR LEASE REVOKED. VEHICLE IMMOBILIZED. EXECUTIVE CREDIT LINES FROZEN. BALANCE DUE IMMEDIATELY. STOCK OPTION VESTING: CANCELED.
Brendan’s face went completely white. "No... no, no, no. This is an error. There’s a glitch in the server!"
"There is no glitch, Brendan," I said softly, stepping forward. "You always wondered why your promotions happened so easily over the last three years. You thought it was your brilliance. You thought it was your incredible work ethic."
I took a sharp breath, looking him straight in the eyes.
"It was me. Every time your name came up on a promotion roster, I signed off on it because I loved you. I wanted you to be happy. I wanted you to feel successful so we could build a quiet life together. But you couldn't just be successful, could you? You needed to feel superior. You needed to stomp on me to feel tall."
Diane jumped out of her chair, her face contorted with rage and terror. "This is absurd! This house belongs to my husband! We’ve lived here for five years! You can't turn us out of our own home!"
Arthur Pendelton opened his leather briefcase, pulling out a thick stack of legal deeds and sliding them onto the wet tablecloth.
"Mrs. Morrison," Arthur said crisply. "This property—formerly known as the Morrison Estate—is legally classified as Executive Housing Unit 4B under Aethelard Real Estate Subsidiary LLC. It is leased to senior executives on a conditional basis. Since your son is no longer an employee of Aethelard, your lease has automatically expired."
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Arthur glanced at his watch.
"It is currently 7:42 PM. You have eighteen minutes to vacate the premises before private security forcibly removes you for criminal trespassing."
