Chapter 2

At lunch, I found Chloe by the coffee machine in the break room.

I explained the real budget situation to her from start to finish.

By the time I was done, my throat was dry.

"So now you get it, right?" I asked, looking at her.

Chloe frowned, and for a second I thought she'd actually listened.

But the moment I turned to leave, she let out a cold, mocking laugh.

"Arthur, wow. You really put a lot of thought into that one."

I froze. The way she said it was so sharp it stung.

"So this is the story you came up with to cover your little kickback scheme—throw in some excuse about the company struggling, and hope I buy it?"

"You don't seriously think I'm some clueless rookie, do you?"

"People in finance always act so professional and above it all, but behind the scenes? Fake invoices, kickbacks—you people live off that stuff."

She flipped her blonde hair and lifted her chin like she'd just cracked the case.

"Everyone knows this new firewall deal is worth over ten million dollars. And you expect me to believe the company can't even afford one dinner?"

"Please. If you're going to lie, at least make it believable."

I was stunned. My head was buzzing.

Chloe clicked over on her heels, stopped right in front of me, and looked down at me like she was passing judgment.

"As long as I'm here, a workplace parasite like you isn't getting away with stealing from employees."

That was the moment I suddenly snapped out of it.

I hadn't taken any kickbacks. So why was I, a grown man, wasting time explaining myself to someone this delusional?

The second lunch break ended, Chloe went straight back to the open office and started making a scene.

She shot up from her desk and shouted across the floor:

"Guys! There are a hundred and twenty people in this company!"

"Just from the markup and the kickback alone, certain executives could be pocketing ten or twenty grand!"

"That's enough money for our whole team to be sipping cocktails on a beach in Miami!"

"So why should it be lining someone else's pockets?"

As she spoke, her glare sliced straight at me.

Once she started, other people found the nerve to join in.

"Exactly. We grind all day sending client emails and chasing deals, and someone else gets to sit there tweaking Excel sheets and walk away with tens of thousands?"

Once one person spoke up, more followed.

Chloe's absolute confidence made everyone think she must have some kind of hard evidence on me.

And of all days, CEO Richard had gone to the airport to pick up Mr. Brooks, so there was no one around who could shut the situation down.

The rest of the finance team kept pretending to type, clearly terrified that any of this might splash onto them.

"Arthur, don't you think you owe us an explanation?" Chloe said, crossing her arms.

Great.

I'd already said everything there was to say. If they didn't believe me, there was nothing else I could do.

Richard signs my paycheck, not them.

I dropped the politeness from my face and said in a low voice, "I've already explained it. There was no kickback. If you've got a problem with it, wait until Richard gets back and take it up with him."

The second she realized I was completely ignoring her warning, Chloe exploded.

She stormed over to my desk and slapped a hand against my monitor.

"Oh, so now you're getting defensive?"

"I swear, I cannot stand toxic old white guys like you in the workplace. You think seniority gives you the right to gaslight people and crush employees beneath you!"

She was so worked up she sounded like she was auditioning to be Wall Street's savior.

"I came here to put an end to this kind of workplace abuse!"

"Arthur, I am your karma!"