Chapter 3 - The Blackmail
The heavy silence in the dining room felt absolutely suffocating as Evelyn held up the small silver flash drive.
Mariana's confident posture faltered for just a fraction of a second, her eyes locking onto the device.
I stepped completely in front of my wife, physically blocking my mother's intimidating gaze.
I demanded to know exactly what kind of twisted game Evelyn was trying to play in my home.
My mother casually tossed the flash drive onto the polished mahogany table next to Mariana's legal binder.
She smiled sweetly, acting like a caring mother trying to protect her successful son from a terrible mistake.
"It contains the security footage from the library on the night of your company gala, Julian," Evelyn stated.
I frowned, trying desperately to remember the specific night she was talking about.
The charity gala had been held at the estate over two months ago, right before I left for Chicago.
"Mariana wasn't entirely alone in the library that night while you were busy entertaining clients," Chloe added maliciously.
I turned around to look at Mariana, expecting her to immediately deny whatever lie they were selling.
Instead, Mariana looked incredibly pale, her hands trembling slightly as she stared at the drive.
Evelyn proudly announced that the footage clearly showed Mariana having a highly intimate conversation with my chief financial officer, David.
Chloe smirked and claimed they had been secretly meeting behind my back for months.
My mother looked me dead in the eye and stated that if I kicked her out, she would leak the footage to the corporate board.
She promised that a massive scandal would completely destroy my reputation and tank my company's upcoming public offering.
I looked down at the flash drive resting on the table, feeling a wave of nauseating doubt creeping into my mind.
I knew my mother was a cruel manipulator, but she rarely bluffed when it came to corporate sabotage.
I asked Mariana directly if there was any truth to the disgusting accusations my family was making.
Mariana took a deep breath, lifting her chin with a fierce, unyielding determination.
She admitted that she had met privately with David in the library during the charity gala.
My mother laughed triumphantly, turning to her gossiping friends as if the case had just been completely closed.
But Mariana didn't stop talking.
She firmly stated that she was absolutely not having an affair with my chief financial officer.
She turned to Evelyn and delivered a statement that completely shattered my mother's smug victory.
"David and I were meeting secretly because we discovered a massive discrepancy in the foundation's charitable accounts."
Mariana reached into her binder and pulled out a heavily redacted financial ledger.
"Evelyn didn't just steal my grocery money," Mariana announced to the shocked room.
"She has been using her position on the charity board to funnel hundreds of thousands of dollars into a shell corporation."
Evelyn's face turned completely gray, and she violently knocked a crystal glass off the table in sheer panic.
The glass shattered loudly against the marble floor, echoing through the silent dining room.
I stared at my mother in absolute horror, realizing she had been actively stealing from sick children to fund her lavish lifestyle.
I slowly picked up the silver flash drive from the table and crushed it entirely beneath the heel of my shoe.
I told my mother she had exactly ten minutes to pack her bags before I called the federal authorities.
Evelyn panicked, grabbing Chloe's arm and dragging her furiously toward the grand staircase.
Mariana let out a long, shaky breath and leaned heavily against the wooden table.
I pulled her into a fierce, desperate embrace, apologizing a thousand times for ever leaving her alone with those monsters.
She hugged me back tightly, burying her face into my shoulder as years of hidden trauma finally spilled out in quiet tears.
We stood there holding each other as the chaotic sounds of packing echoed from the upper floor.
Suddenly, my cell phone vibrated violently in my pocket with an emergency alert from my company's security team.
May you like
I pulled it out and read the terrifying text message flashing across the bright screen.
David, my chief financial officer, had just been found unconscious in his office, the victim of a brutal assault.
