CHAPTER 3 — The Man He Should Never Have Called Weak
CHAPTER 3 — The Man He Should Never Have Called Weak
Matthew returned forty-seven minutes later.
He didn’t use the front door.
He stormed in through the private elevator, furious, disheveled, already shouting.
“What the hell did you do?”
He froze when he saw me.
Or what was left of me on the floor.
Then he saw the shadow behind him.
Two men in black suits.
Then two more.
Then—
My father stepped in.
No urgency.
No hesitation.
Just presence.
Matthew laughed once.
A sharp, broken sound.
“This is cute. You brought your father?”
My father looked at him the way one might look at something already discarded.
“I came for my daughter,” he said. “You are simply in the way.”
Matthew’s smile twitched.
“You think you can ruin me? NexusCore is untouchable.”
My father tilted his head slightly.
“That was true,” he said calmly. “Until seven minutes ago.”
Matthew’s phone rang.
He answered instinctively.
His expression shifted.
Confusion.
Then disbelief.
Then panic.
“No… no, that’s not possible.”
He turned away, typing rapidly.
Another call came.
Then another.
Then another.
Each one worse than the last.
Banks freezing accounts.
Board members resigning.
Partners pulling out.
A federal compliance flag placed on NexusCore’s financial structure.
Every lifeline cut at once.
He dropped the phone.
For the first time, his voice cracked.
“What did you do?”
My father finally looked directly at him.
“I reminded the world who funded your rise.”
Silence.
Then Matthew turned slowly toward me.
Something in his eyes changed.
Not anger anymore.
May you like
Fear.
Real fear.
