Chapter 56
S o, this is it.
And you made a deal without me. This should go so, so well.
“Be there in twenty,” I said, followed by me hanging up before I could say anything regrettable.
I sighed as I put the phone down.
“Morgan?” Layla asked.
I nodded.
“I should get going.”
Layla didn’t fight it. She knew that whatever happened at that meeting would dictate everything—there was nothing she could say that would affect anything else. She got up, walked me to the door, and gave me a wishful hug. It did nothing to change the seeming finality of the situation.
I walked down the stairs of her apartment, feeling like I was descending into a sort of hell that was about to wash over me.
When I emerged from the building, a massive gust of wind blew right in my face.
It moved so violently, in fact, a nearby trash can got knocked over, spilling debris onto the street.
I began the slow walk over to Hunt Industries, girding myself for a fight and a negotiation.
No matter what happened, I decided, I would stand up for MCH remaining an entity, I would demand that Edwin lay off the tactics, and I would demand Morgan have freedom to do as he wished.
Everything else was negotiable, and I didn’t have that strong ties to anything else.
But I did not need to see either of us succumb and I did not need to see anyone else’s good name dragged through the mud.
On the way, I got a little bored and pulled open Facebook, hoping to see that Sarah had messaged me back.
To my surprise and then my concern, though, not only had Sarah not messaged me back, it looked like she had deleted her account entirely.
The fuck? Did my photo get her banned? Doesn’t seem like it would, they don’t ban girls who receive pics worse than mine, just the sender. And my account is still active, so…
What the fuck is going on?
I could still access the archives of our messages, but instead of showing “Sarah Hill” it showed “Deleted User” and instead of her profile photo, it showed just the classic silhouette of an unidentified user.
I still had the old photos she had sent which gave me a temporary smile, but as soon as I scrolled away, the old feelings of paranoia came roaring back.
I put my phone away after some time, deciding it wouldn’t do any good to create more confusion in my life at a time when I precisely needed much less of it. Edwin and Morgan were likely about to throw a lot my way, and I needed a clear frame of mind to operate out of.
Even if that seemed like wishful thinking on my part.
When I came to the building, it seemed more ominous than it ever had.
It was a drab gray building, not a sleek, architecturally significant building like many new ones in the Manhattan area.
Edwin had had it built sometime in the 70’s, and it showed.
It had not aged well, but then again, maybe that was the point.
Maybe it wanted to go for that “classic” feel—which I took as code for underwhelming look.
I stepped inside and was surprised to see Edwin Hunt waiting for me in the lobby, wearing a big, ugly grin. I immediately had a terrible fucking feeling about all of this, especially since Edwin looked happy. If he was happy, I almost certainly was not going to be.
“Welcome, Chance,” he said. “Come with me.”
I didn’t fight. I had what I wanted. I moved with Edwin through the lobby, to a private elevator, and rode up with him.
It was strange how for so long, I’d wanted to kick this man’s ass for everything that he had done. I wanted to teach him a lesson he wouldn’t forget with what little life he had left.
But now? He just looked like the classic miser who operated well in only one condition—at work.
He didn’t so much walk as he waddled; he breathed heavily just getting on the elevator; and he was already sweating.
He might have had a shitload of money, but clearly, billions of dollars couldn’t buy him a cardiovascular system that was even mediocre, let alone good.
It also couldn’t buy him a family that loved him. Sure, Morgan might have kept him around, but I knew what he was doing. He was taking my side in the end, he had sworn as much.
The doors opened to a private hallway. The doors to Edwin’s office were already open. Even the secretary had disappeared. I didn’t know if this was good or bad news, but at least whatever happened between us would just remain between us.
Assuming, of course, that Edwin didn’t record this for his own purposes.
When I stepped inside his office, I saw what the walls had obstructed—a small, circular table. Morgan sat in one chair, with two other chairs pulled up.
“What’s going on, Morgan?” I said.
He didn’t respond. He was dressed… way too nicely. I was just wearing a sweater and jeans. He was in a full suit and tie outfit, as if…
As if he had come back to work at Hunt Industries.
It all but got confirmed when he refused to look me in the eyes. Damnit, Morgan… why?
“Let’s have a seat,” Edwin said, closing the doors. “How are you this morning, Chance?”
“I’ll be better when I know what’s going on.”
“I see, right to the point, I can respect that.”
Edwin was surely just trolling me at this point by going slow, but I swore not to react emotionally.
I kept my mouth shut as he took a seat, gasping for air as he did so.
Maybe Morgan did have a point. Maybe I just had to wait for him to croak and then life would be good.
It wouldn’t be years given the man’s condition. Months, maybe.
“Well, Chance, you have been a rather prickly thorn in my side the last couple of months, I think we can all acknowledge that. Your rogue attitude, your condescension to me, and your lackadaisical behavior concern me and it concerns Morgan. I have to admit, I was mighty displeased with Morgan here when he told me he was quitting the family business to start something with you.”
“You don’t say,” I said, but Morgan’s look told me to shut the hell up. I would, but only because I was concerned I would say something that would come back to bite me in the ass.
“I told Morgan that it was one thing to start a business on his own. It was another to do it with someone who could not control their physical impulses.”
Oh, how my fists balled up at that. Oh, how I wanted to jump across the table and choke this asshole out with his tie.
“But in the end, boys will be boys and you two have to make the mistakes that you made,” he said.
Like witnessing my brother’s father steal away an entire base of employees to fuck over a startup we had invested in? I suppose that’s one mistake.
“Now, let me explain something to you real quick, Chance,” Edwin said. “Your actions have put my son in a terrible spot.”
“My—”
I shut my mouth again when Morgan again shot me a look.
“Your actions have made my son homeless, jobless, and in a general state of frustrated and defeated. When I most recently saw him, I saw a man who had aged five years in just two months. He looked like he hadn’t slept.
And then, when he explained to me what you were planning to do, why, if I didn’t have years of wisdom under my belt, boy, I’d have a right mind to come in here and slap you myself. ”
Now I couldn’t help my glare to Morgan. He’d told Edwin what we were planning to do?
“You…”
Left unsaid was traitor, but that did not feel like a strong enough word. Nothing could really encapsulate the rage and bitterness I felt toward Morgan right now. Nothing could properly describe the treachery, the betrayal, the Benedict Arnold-type action that Morgan had just committed.
“But, I understand you, Chance. You don’t like me and, frankly, I don’t like you. But I know a thing or two about you. For one, you’re a man of many words, but you’re not a man of your word.”
“Why the hell am I here?” I growled. “This is not going to be a fucking roast of me.”
“Would you let me finish?”
Edwin seemed deliberately comfortable and unfazed by what was going on, which led me to believe that he had a strong upper hand here I could not fight. I began to see it so clearly now. Just as Layla was a mole, now Morgan was a mole.
But… why? What did Morgan gain by joining me in business, watching me grow angry at Edwin Hunt, and then reporting it all to him?
Nearly two decades of brotherhood and friendship had never produced anything worse than competition for the same girl; it wasn’t like I had killed his favorite pet one day and he’d vowed revenge.
Something wasn’t adding up. But in this moment, there sure was a lot of pressure and fear adding up quickly.
“See, Chance, you’re not a man of your word.
But you are a man whose words persuade many.
The fact that you were able to beat me for Virtual Realty is no small feat, and I may add, I’m still a bit annoyed by that.
Perhaps if I were younger, I could have better related to that Indian boy over there. ”
“Andrew?” I said, growling.
“Yeah, whatever his name was.”
No wonder he didn’t invest in you. You probably got his name mixed up or just assumed it was something so cliche you didn’t bother to learn anything specific about him.
“However, I am aware that Virtual Realty has not made any more sales since you took over, or at least not an uptick over what they did before. Seems to me that if you’re offering them any advice, it is not working.”
“Oh—”
I went silent again, but this game of silence and nearly talking would not last forever. Sooner or later, I was going to crack.
“But, like I said, I see you have the gift of gab and charm,” Edwin said.
“So, let me explain something to you here very clearly. I have made this offer before, and I will make it again. You may think me crazy or ignorant of your past, but let me give you some things to consider before you outright reject me.”
I gulped. Here it came.