Business No More

Chapter 17

Sam gives my hand a squeeze as a confirmation that Daniel is about to drop the last bomb. I can't help but smile and by the looks of it, it's killing Jess when she notices my expression.

A knock on the door draws our attention before Dale opens it.

"Just thought I'd knock to add suspense," Daniel claims as he walks in.

Jess watches him. A smile grows on her lips.

It confuses me for a second why she'd be smiling seeing Daniel.

"It's like a party in here," Daniel says and it takes almost everything in me to not laugh.

"Seriously guys, it's a bloody sauna," Daniel says. "Whose sweating? Cause I'm about to cause more sweat."

"Remember Max," Jess says.

I hold on to Sam because I can tell he doesn't like being reminded of him. No one should've lost a brother that way. Although it's been a while, I sometimes see Sam open the family photo album and look at Max's pictures.

"Well," she says clicking her heels against the floor. "You honestly didn't think you had only one brother who was envious of your work."

Sam and I look at each other before noticing Daniel hand her a document.

"Here you go, princess," Daniel says as he hands her a document.

"This," she says lifting the document up so we can see. "This right here is your doom, because I got your brother-in-law to get you to sign everything over to me."

She walks over to me. "You thought you could take Sam's property...think again. I didn't want to take chances," she says. "Daniel told me I should take precautions so I got both of your signatures."

I stare at her. My expression doesn't change.

She points at me. "Just in case you also owned something, I got your signature and as it turns out...you own everything."

Sam slams his hand against the wall. I take a deep breath as I watch the smile crawl across her face. She uses her fingernail to pull hair away from her face as she tucks it behind her ear.

I frown at Daniel. "Daniel, how could you?"

He tilts his head sideways and shoves his hands in his pocket like he doesn't care. This draws a hideous laugh from Jess. It shocks me that Sam used to call her friend but she had disappeared for five years and people can change a lot in that time and perhaps that's what happened to her.

She brings the document right up into Sam's face. Almost rubbing it in.

"Things can change, you know," Jess whispers in his ear. Although intentionally loud enough so i can hear. She sticks a finger up. "All it takes is one night."

I cringe at the words. She thinks she's so good, she thinks she's too good. She doesn't know what'll happen. Although I've never even thought of murdering someone, she'd be the first. I can imagine slamming her head against the glass coffee table and watching her beg for mercy. It scares me when the image pops in my mind. I can be scary, I guess.

Suddenly a smile on Sam's face almost wipes Jess' away. She looks back and forth expecting us to cry or beg or even for Sam to walk over to her but she'll stay disappointed because that won't happen.

That's when Daniel walks over from her side to stand next to me. "Tsk tsk tsk," he says. "You honestly thought I'd turn on my family for your sake."

Daniel points at the contract. "You should read the contract."

Jess watches us before her eyes snap to Daniel. "What do you mean?"

"Oh no, I wouldn't want to ruin it for you," Daniel says. "Go on, have a read. I insist."

She grasps the contract in her hand and flips through the pages in lightening speed. Confusion written all over her face.

"Maybe you should've read the contract before trusting me," Daniel says. "Not only does Violet own Sam's company but now she also owns yours."

Jess' eyes open up as she watches Daniel.

"The contract I got you to sign wasn't to take her property but to give yours to her."

She smiles. "Well that's only the case if you still have the contract."

We all look back and forth between each other. What does she have in mind now?

Jess' rips the contract, shredding it into pieces but stops immediately when none of us react.

Daniel pulls a contract out from the inside of his jacket pocket. "Yours was a photocopy, here's the real one. Not everyone is as stupid as you."

She fists her hands, slamming them against Daniel's chest before throwing a kick. That's when the door swings open and the police follow Dale in.

The whole office watches. I can see the fear in their eyes. Some worried about their jobs but most worried for Sam because he was a good boss. Never arrogant or rude. I smile because there was an exception to that rule. The part when he was arrogant and rude to me when I worked for him but I kind of deserved it.

The cops handcuff her as she stays still. The whole thing still hasn't hit her but if that doesn't then what Daniel says next will.

Dale hands Daniel another document. "Remember this, I got you to sign this but it wasn't for what you thought. This right here states that you have accepted the fact that you tried to kill Violet and bring harm to their baby."

Sam walks up to her. "You'll be in jail for attempted murder, have fun."