Chapter 4

Arthur stood frozen, his hand shaking slightly as he stared at me in disbelief.

"What did you say?"

I took another step down the stairs.

"Are you deaf? I told you to burn it."

I walked right up to him, stopping just inches away from the gasoline-soaked asphalt.

"The customs declaration value for this batch of Swiss watches is exactly $500,000."

"Arson and destruction of high-value property of others—that’s a minimum of three to ten years in federal prison."

I pointed at the influencers who were filming live.

"There are dozens of cameras recording this. Hundreds of eyes watching."

"Go ahead, Arthur. Flick that lighter. You’ll get free housing and meals for the rest of your life. No more serving rotten seafood."

Arthur’s hand holding the lighter began to tremble violently. Panic finally crept into his eyes.

He never expected me to call his bluff so ruthlessly.

"Natalie, stop trying to scare me with the law!" he screamed, trying to mask his fear.

"I’m just protecting my rights! You broke the contract first!"

"Pay me now! Or I swear to God I'll burn it, and you'll have nothing to show your clients tonight!"

I chuckled, looking at him like he was a pathetic clown.

"Protecting your rights? Fine."

I turned to Chloe. "Call the police."

Chloe stammered, "But Natalie, if the police come, the gala..."

"I said call them!" I raised my voice.

Startled, Chloe quickly pulled out her phone and dialed 911.

Seeing that I was actually doing it, Arthur lost his mind.

"Screw you! You asked for this!"

He gritted his teeth and pressed the ignition on the lighter.

The blue flame flared up. He made a motion to throw it onto the gasoline-soaked boxes.

The crowd screamed, scattering in all directions.

But right before the lighter left his hand—

"Stop right there!"

A booming, authoritative voice echoed from behind me.

The glass doors of The Pinnacle Club swung open.

I turned around.

My boss, Marcus, the CEO of our company, walked out with a dark expression, flanked by a group of our most important VIP clients.

The crowd automatically parted to make way.

Marcus looked at the gasoline-soaked mess, then at the manic Arthur, and finally, his sharp gaze landed on me.

"Natalie, what is going on here?"

"I trusted you to host our tenth-anniversary gala. How did it turn into this circus?"

Before I could speak, Arthur acted as if he had just seen his savior and threw himself toward Marcus.

"Sir! Thank God you're here!"

He began to cry fake tears, wailing like a victim in a cheap soap opera.

"Sir, your director, Natalie, is an absolute monster!"

The entire street went dead silent. All the influencers pointed their cameras directly at Arthur.

Marcus frowned. "Speak clearly. What did Natalie do?"

Arthur pointed a finger at my nose, his teeth gritting.

"To prepare for your ten-table banquet, I ordered the finest ingredients weeks in advance!"

"But just two hours before the event, Natalie came into my kitchen and demanded a fifty-percent kickback under the table!"

The crowd instantly erupted into whispers.

"My business is just a small local restaurant! How could I afford to pay her that much?"

"When I refused, she got furious and unilaterally canceled our agreement!"

"Then she used your company's power to move the entire event across the street!"

"Sir, I have fifty thousand dollars worth of premium seafood rotting in my kitchen right now! If I don't get justice tonight, my family will starve on the streets!"

The murmurs from the crowd grew louder.

"I knew it. These corporate executives are all corrupt."

"A fifty percent kickback? That’s insane."

"Now this is a show. Getting exposed for corruption right in front of her boss and clients!"

Arthur's prep cooks joined in, chanting, "Punish the thief! Pay us our hard-earned money!"

Marcus's face darkened completely.

Behind him, the VIP clients began to look at me with growing suspicion and disapproval.

"Natalie," Marcus said, his voice cold as ice.

"In front of our most important clients, if you cannot explain this clearly right now, don't bother coming to work tomorrow."

I stood there, looking at Arthur’s face, which was twisted in triumphant glee.

A rush of adrenaline—and absolute satisfaction—flooded my veins.

I slowly unbuttoned my blazer.

"Arthur, you claim I demanded a kickback. Do you have any proof?" I asked calmly.

Arthur sneered, puffing out his chest. "You demanded it verbally! Who would leave a paper trail for that?"

"But the fact that you canceled the booking and ruined my business is undeniable!"

"Is that so?" I smiled.

I pulled a USB drive from my pocket and handed it to Chloe.

"Project this onto the giant screen on the exterior wall of The Pinnacle. Turn the volume to maximum."

Chloe immediately ran inside to execute the command.

Arthur's eyes twitched. "What are you doing?"

I ignored him, keeping my eyes fixed on the massive digital screen above us.

Ten seconds later, with a loud static buzz, the screen lit up.

The footage displayed on the screen was none other than the filthy, chaotic kitchen of The Rustic Hearth!