Chapter 9: The truth about Uma
1339 Words
The air at Pier 17 was damp with the scent of the East River. The quiet lapping of the waves against the docks mixed with the distant sounds of traffic and nightlife in the city. It was nearly empty except for a few late-night wanderers and dockworkers. A single streetlight flickered, casting long shadows over the concrete.
I tightened my grip on the small switchblade in my pocket—just in case. Lor stood beside me, hands in her coat, her blue eyes scanning the darkness. “If this is a setup, we run,” she whispered.
I nodded. “Yeah, I’m not trying to get dumped in the river tonight.”
Then, from the shadows, a figure stepped forward.
Burn Hidds.
Dressed in his usual tailored suit, he looked oddly casual for a guy caught in what seemed like a major financial conspiracy. He smirked, hands raised as if to show he wasn’t armed. “Benny. Lor. Nice of you to come.”
Lor folded her arms. “You called us here. What do you want?”
Burn chuckled. “Always straight to business. That’s what I like about you, Lor.”
I stepped closer. “Enough games. What the hell is going on?”
Burn took a deep breath, glancing around as if to make sure we weren’t being watched. Then he lowered his voice.
“You’re in over your heads.”
Lor scoffed. “Gee, thanks for the update.”
Burn ignored her. “Listen to me. Dan isn’t the problem here. He’s a pawn. Just like you were, Lor. Just like Benny’s about to be.”
I clenched my jaw. “What are you talking about?”
Burn reached into his coat. Both Lor and I tensed, but he only pulled out a small, folded piece of paper. He handed it to me.
I unfolded it.
A list of names. Some I recognized. Some I didn’t. But one stood out immediately.
Uma Hidds.
I looked at Burn. “What the hell is this?”
He sighed. “Uma’s been playing a long game. You think she’s just some opportunist? She’s not. She’s been pulling strings for years, making moves. Dan wasn’t her first mark. And he won’t be her last.”
Lor grabbed the paper from my hands, her expression darkening. “And why the hell should we trust you?”
Burn smirked. “Because, sweetheart, if you don’t, you won’t make it through the next week alive.”
Back at my apartment, Lor paced back and forth, the paper still clutched in her hands. “This doesn’t make sense.”
I sat on the couch, rubbing my temples. “No, it makes perfect sense. Uma isn’t just some homewrecker. She’s a goddamn mastermind.”
Lor stopped pacing. “But why? Why destroy my life? Harriet’s life? What does she get out of it?”
I thought back to what Burn had said. She’s been making moves for years.
I pulled out my laptop, searching through old news articles, corporate records—anything that might give us a clue.
And then I found it.
A series of business acquisitions under different names, but all traced back to one shell company.
U.H. Holdings.
Uma Hidds Holdings.
I turned the screen to Lor. “She’s been buying up companies. Small ones at first, but look at the timeline. Every major personal disaster in your life? Harriet’s divorce? Your firing? They line up perfectly with her biggest acquisitions.”
Lor sat down heavily. “She’s been using us. Manipulating us. For what?”
I scrolled further. And then I saw it.
A recent business deal.
Uma Hidds had just put in an offer to buy Norman Clothings and Boots.
My company.
I felt my stomach drop. “She’s coming for me next.”
The next morning, I received another text.
“11 PM. The Whitmore Hotel. Rooftop.”
No name. No threats. But I already knew who it was.
Uma.
Lor read over my shoulder. “You’re not going.”
I exhaled. “I have to.”
She shook her head. “It’s a trap.”
“Of course it is.” I grabbed my coat. “But it’s time we start setting some traps of our own.”
Lor stared at me for a long moment. Then, finally, she nodded. “Alright, Benny. Let’s finish this.”
The Whitmore Hotel loomed over the city like a monolith, its golden lights casting a haunting glow across the streets below. I adjusted my collar and stepped inside, my heart pounding as I made my way to the elevator.
Lor wasn’t happy about me coming here alone. I wasn’t exactly thrilled about it either, but this was something I had to do.
The elevator dinged as I reached the rooftop. A cold gust of wind greeted me as I stepped out onto the open terrace. There, leaning against the glass railing with a cigarette in hand, was Uma Hidds.
She turned her head slightly, exhaling smoke before giving me a lazy smirk. “Took you long enough.”
I crossed my arms. “You called. I came. Let’s skip the small talk.”
Uma chuckled, tapping her cigarette. “You always were direct. That’s what I liked about you, Benny.”
I ignored the way she said my name, the way her voice wrapped around it like a snake coiling around prey. “What’s your game, Uma? Why Dan? Why Lor? Why—” I held up the paper Burn had given me, “—why this list of names?”
Her smirk didn’t waver. If anything, she looked amused. “You’re asking all the wrong questions.”
I took a step closer. “Then ask the right ones for me.”
She let out a soft laugh, flicking the cigarette away before turning to face me fully. “You think this is about revenge, don’t you? Some petty vendetta against Lor?” She took a step closer. “Or maybe you think I’m after money, like some greedy little gold-digger.”
“Are you?” I challenged.
Uma’s smile faded. “No.”
I watched her, waiting. And then she sighed, running a hand through her hair. “Do you know what it’s like to be underestimated your entire life, Benny?”
I stayed silent.
She continued. “To be the girl who’s always looked at sideways? The one who’s too wild, too unpredictable, too much trouble? The one who will never be as good as her siblings, never be worthy of love or respect?” Her voice hardened. “Because I do.”
I frowned. “Uma, what are you—”
She cut me off. “I didn’t ruin Lor’s life because I hate her, Benny. I did it because it was the only way to survive.”
My stomach twisted. “Survive what?”
Uma looked at me, and for the first time that night, I saw something in her eyes I hadn’t expected—fear.
“The people behind that list.” She nodded toward the crumpled paper in my hand. “I’ve been playing a game that’s bigger than you, bigger than Dan, bigger than Lor. And if I don’t win, I lose everything.”
The wind howled between us. I felt a cold sweat forming at the back of my neck.
“What do you mean, Uma?” I asked slowly.
She hesitated. Then, finally, she spoke.
“There are people watching us right now, Benny.”
I stiffened. My instincts screamed at me to turn, to look, but I forced myself to stay still.
Uma took another step forward, her voice barely above a whisper. “They don’t care about me. Or you. Or Dan. But they care about what I know.”
I swallowed hard. “And what do you know?”
She reached into her coat, and I flinched—only for her to pull out a small flash drive. She held it up between two fingers.
“Everything.”
- Writer
