Chapter 5 - Victor Comes Back
Monday morning, Emily arrived to find reporters outside the Grand Bellmore.
Melissa met her near the employee entrance.
“Don't go through the front.”
“Why?”
“Victor Lang.”
“What did he do?”
“His company released a statement.”
Emily pulled out her phone.
Lang Development claimed Victor had been “provoked by an employee during a private dispute” and that Bellmore executives were using the incident to escape legitimate business obligations.
Emily stared at the screen.
“He's blaming me?”
“Pretty much.”
Inside, Jonathan was already on a conference call.
Samuel sat quietly nearby.
Emily entered.
“Mr. Bennett?”
Samuel looked up.
“I saw it.”
“What do I do?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
Jonathan ended the call.
“Victor wants you angry. Angry people make mistakes.”
Emily folded her arms.
“He threw wine in my face and now he's telling everyone I provoked him.”
Samuel nodded.
“So we don't argue.”
“What do we do?”
“We release facts.”
Jonathan slid a document across the table.
“Legal approved the security footage.”
Emily stared at him.
“The video?”
“Only the lobby incident. No confidential investigation material.”
Samuel added, “You decide. You're the person in the video.”
Emily thought for several seconds.
“Release it.”
That afternoon, Bellmore issued a short statement with unedited security footage.
The video showed Victor demanding Samuel be removed.
Emily refusing.
Victor throwing wine.
Emily asking, Are you finished?
Then Samuel's identity being revealed.
Public reaction was immediate.
But Samuel refused to celebrate.
“This isn't entertainment,” he told Jonathan. “There's still an investigation.”
Two days later, forensic auditors found far more than eight million dollars in questionable invoices.
Electronic records linked multiple shell companies to Victor's associates.
Richard began cooperating through his attorney.
Then Emily received a call at the front desk.
“Grand Bellmore. This is Emily.”
Victor's voice answered.
“You've enjoyed your fifteen minutes?”
Emily straightened.
“How did you get this extension?”
“Listen carefully. Tell Bennett to stop digging.”
“I don't take instructions for Mr. Bennett.”
“You don't understand what you've stepped into.”
Emily looked toward the security office.
The call was being logged.
“Then explain it.”
Victor went silent.
Emily continued.
“You called me, Mr. Lang.”
“You think that old man cares about you?”
“Yes.”
Victor hadn't expected that.
Emily added:
“And even if he didn't, I would still have done the same thing.”
“Why?”
“Because being rich doesn't give you permission to humiliate people.”
Victor laughed bitterly.
“You'll regret this.”
The line went dead.
Emily immediately contacted security.
Samuel arrived ten minutes later.
“You all right?”
“Yes.”
“You sure?”
Emily nodded.
“He wanted me afraid.”
Samuel looked toward the lobby.
“And?”
“I have rent due next week, student loans and a car that makes a terrible noise every morning.”
Samuel smiled.
“So?”
“I already have enough things to be afraid of.”
Samuel laughed.
It was the first genuine laugh Emily had heard from him.
Then Jonathan entered holding his phone.
His expression was serious.
“Samuel.”
“What?”
“Richard's attorney just contacted us.”
“And?”
“He turned over everything.”
Samuel stood.
Jonathan continued.
“Emails. Accounts. Contracts.”
Emily asked, “Is it enough?”
May you like
Jonathan nodded.
“More than enough.”
