He Chose Her, I Seized Their Firm

Chapter 3

Messages continued pouring into my phone.

The family group chat was in an uproar as well. One relative after another piled on with insults.

They called me a shameless mistress and said I must be desperate to marry into the Lawson family. They mocked me for believing that a few extra years of school entitled me to marry into wealth.

I scrolled through a few messages, lost interest, and placed the phone facedown on the bed.

Soon after, Eric Mason, the general manager at my company, called.

"Nora, the whole industry has heard about the scene you made at the IPO bell-ringing ceremony. I approved your leave, and now I'm being dragged into this mess too."

Before he could continue, I answered in a hoarse voice.

"Eric, save it. I quit."

After ending the call, I stood alone by the window.

Outside, aging apartment blocks crowded the neglected neighborhood. Utility lines and laundry strung from fire escapes cut the sky into uneven strips. Somewhere nearby, a television blared a dating show, punctuated by a contestant's bright laughter.

I had lost the man I loved and the career I had worked for. It felt as though I had nothing left.

Early the next morning, I left the apartment carrying a bag of trash.

Before I reached the dumpster, I noticed a crowd gathered at the entrance to the alley.

My stomach dropped. I tossed the trash bag aside and shoved my way through the crowd.

My mother stood in the middle of the crowd, her face flushed and her eyes full of tears. When she saw me, she opened her mouth, but no words came out.

A middle-aged woman in a flowered housecoat lunged forward and shoved me hard in the shoulder.

I stumbled backward and struck the wall.

She planted her hands on her hips and pointed a finger inches from my nose. Her voice was loud enough to carry down the entire alley.

"I can't believe we've been living next door to a homewrecker! Women like her aren't welcome here!"

The moment she finished, the crowd erupted, pointing at us and hurling insults.

My mother panicked. Her hands trembled as she tugged at the woman's sleeve and repeated the same words over and over.

"Nora isn't a bad person. She didn't break up anyone's family."

Her voice was swallowed by the shouting.

I grabbed my mother's hand and pulled her toward home. Her whole body shook.

"Nora, Mom knows you did nothing wrong. Let's move somewhere far away. We can't take on the Lawson family. We'll go somewhere they can't reach us and stay out of trouble."

I tightened my grip on her hand and walked faster.

Their jeers chased us all the way home.

"A homewrecker raised another homewrecker! Women who destroy families deserve to rot!"

"Everyone listen! If those two aren't gone by tonight, I'll come back with people and tear their apartment apart myself!"

The moment we rushed back inside, my phone rang. It was Sienna.

When I answered, Sienna's syrupy voice came through the speaker.

"Nora, don't blame me. This was Caleb's decision. The IPO was too important to Lawson Group, and the backlash is already out of control. Caleb has invited major news outlets from around the country for a televised interview tomorrow."

She paused.

"All you have to do is admit on camera that you're the other woman. Say you did all of this because you were jealous of me. Then I'll tell the neighbors to back off and let you and your mother stay. Otherwise, don't blame me for what happens next."

Her voice turned cold.

"You know how much influence the Lawson family has in this city. One word from me, and no one here will hire you. Picking through trash will be your only option."

The line went dead.

I turned around.

My mother sat on the edge of the bed, carefully applying antiseptic to the cut on her forehead. Her hand shook, and when she pressed the cotton swab too hard, she hissed. Then she swallowed the sound, hoping I hadn't noticed.

I looked around the room.

The metal cabinet was rusted. Black mold covered the corners, and yellow water stains spread across the ceiling.

For three years, those four walls had been both our home and our cage.

I suddenly laughed.

'I've already hit rock bottom. What else is there to fear? Do they really think I can't find another job? They have no idea what I'm capable of. And they've forgotten that I still have one card left to play.'

I picked up my phone and dialed a number I hadn't used in years.

It rang once before someone answered.

"Attorney Collins, I want to enforce the trademark licensing agreement we signed before Lawson Group went public."