Chapter 2

At 2 AM, the doorbell rang.

Someone was frantically ringing the bell and pounding on the door.

I rose from the sofa, walked slowly and deliberately to the door, and opened it.

Trent stood outside, her hair disheveled, eyes red, dragging a suitcase, breathless.

She had clearly taken a cab straight from the airport.

"Ethan... Ethan, have you lost your mind?!"

She stormed in, grabbing my collar.

"Why did you touch that card?! Do you even know what you're doing?!"

I looked down at her hand clutching my collar and smiled.

"Trent, I was just about to ask you, what kind of money is on that card?"

She paused, her eyes flickering.

"That's... that's the company's operating capital! If you mess with it, there will be huge problems!"

"Company's operating capital?"

I pushed her hand away, my voice calm.

"A quarterly patent licensing fee of $300,000 is the company's operating capital?"

Trent's face changed. "You... how did you know?"

"I also know that you and Kevin were managing those patent fees for me, right?"

She took a step back, her expression flustered, but quickly regained her composure.

She looked at me, slowly sat on the sofa, and lit a cigarette.

I had never seen her smoke before.

"You went through my emails?" she asked.

"Yep."

She exhaled a puff of smoke and smiled. It wasn't a guilty smile, but a relieved one.

"Good."

She leaned back against the sofa, looking at me, her eyes devoid of guilt, only a strange frankness.

"Ethan, what do you want to know?"

"I'll tell you."

"Kevin isn't just a client. We've been together for two years."

She tapped the ash from her cigarette, her tone as flat as if she were commenting on the weather.

"You didn't know anything for these past five years, and you seemed quite happy, didn't you?"

I clenched my fist, my knuckles turning white. She glanced at me and stubbed out her cigarette.

"So stop making trouble."

"It's useless for you to link that card back. The patent licensing agreement has the company's seal on it, not your personal one."

"You won't get it back that easily."

She stood up, patting down her dress.

"You're just a techie; you don't get business, and you certainly can't win this fight."

She dragged her suitcase into the master bedroom and shut the door.

I was left alone in the living room. I stood rooted to the spot, feeling a chill run through me.

She didn't even bother lying to me anymore.

The next morning, I left for work.

As I reached the entrance of my apartment complex, a black Porsche pulled up to the curb.

The window rolled down, and a man in sunglasses smiled at me.

"You're Ethan?"

I stopped. "Who are you?"

He took off his sunglasses, revealing a pair of narrow eyes.

"Kevin. Kevin Matthews."

My blood rushed to my head.

He leaned against the car door, sizing me up, a playful smirk on his lips.

"Trent told me you made a scene yesterday. I came to check in and have a chat."

"Nothing to chat about."

I turned to leave, but he spoke calmly behind me.

"Ethan, I mean no harm."

"Honestly, I admire you. Your tech work is truly excellent."

"But you know, just having technology isn't enough."

"Your patents, without Trent's business operations, aren't worth a dime."

I stopped.

"So?"

"So, I'm here to make you an offer."

He walked up to me, pulling a check from his suit pocket.

"$50,000. You cancel the new card link and stop meddling in company affairs."

He held the check out to me.

I stared at that check.

I barely made $15,000 a year. This was five years of my salary.

But those patents had earned $6 million in five years.

He was offering $50,000 to get rid of me?

"No."

Kevin raised an eyebrow.

"Ethan, don't be foolish."

He took back the check and patted my shoulder.

That touch sent shivers down my spine.

"Go home and think about it. This offer won't be available again."

He got into his car, the engine roared, and he sped away.

I stood there, clenching my fists.