I'm the top salesperson at a tutoring center. Payday comes, and my commission is 50 cents.

I'm so furious that I march straight to my boss to demand answers, but his secretary, Sasha Watson, steps in front of me.

She digs through her pocket, pulls out 50 cents, and flicks it straight at my face in front of everyone. "Here's your 50 cents!"

My ears ring. Heat crawls up my neck and into my skull.

"Ms. Watson, this has to be a mistake. I closed 1.5 million dollars on my own last month. My team pulls in over three million dollars. My commission should be at least 200 grand."

Sasha rolls her eyes. She reaches into her wallet, pulls out a dollar bill, and slaps it against my cheek. "Stop barking! Fine, I'll throw you a dollar. Keep the change!"

I'm about to lose it. "My mom is still waiting on that 200 grand for her surgery. Without it, she could die."

The coworkers around us start whispering.

"50 cents? For the top salesperson? That's insane!"

"Lower your voice. She's the boss's niece! What she says goes. Unless you want to get fired, pretend you didn't hear anything."

I turn away, pull out my phone, and dial our biggest competitor. "I'm in. Five million dollars a year."

I slammed my palm on the desk, heat flooding my chest. "Sasha! Who the hell do you think you are, cutting my commission?"

Sasha Watson scoffed, lifted her coffee cup, and blew on it like she had all the time in the world. "I didn't cut your commission. Your commission is 50 cents."

My head was ringing. I jabbed a finger at the performance chart hanging on the wall.

"I brought in 1.5 million dollars last month! It's written right there in black and white! How's my commission only 50 cents on that?"

Sasha's voice shot up, completely drowning me out. "That isn't net profit! You think the company doesn't have costs? Do you have any idea how much we pay for rent, utilities, and instructor salaries?

"You're just in sales. You don't know shit!"

Blood rushed to my head, and my fingertips went numb. "Let me see the financial statements. I have every right to look at them!"

With a sharp snap, Sasha slammed the ledger shut. She stood up, leaned in, and jabbed a finger so close it nearly hit my nose.

"Financial statements? Those are internal company documents. You think you can go through them just because you feel like it? Cassian Golding, you're just an employee. Don't push your luck.

"Keep this up, and I'll make sure you don't even see that 50 cents!"

I clenched my fists until my nails dug into my palms. "Everyone else in sales is getting their full commission. How come I'm the only one stuck with 50 cents?"

Sasha rolled her eyes and fired back, clearly over it. "That's them. You're a different story. Mr. Watson said you took too many days off last year. It dragged down team morale, so your commission got cut."

I forced my anger down and lowered my voice. "My mom is in the hospital in critical condition. I took emergency leave. The contract clearly says that it doesn't affect my commission."

Sasha snorted, yanked a document out of the drawer, and slapped it down on the desk. "Then open your eyes and read the additional terms yourself. The company gets the final say."

I grabbed the contract, my hands shaking so badly I could barely hold it. The additional terms were packed onto the page in tiny, cramped print.

"If an employee's personal situation seriously affects team cooperation, the company reserves the right to adjust the commission structure."

When the words finally sank in, my heart started pounding against my ribs, and my vision went dark around the edges.

"This term is completely unfair! I want to see Mr. Watson!" I snapped, my voice shaking with rage.

Sasha stood up, arms crossed, a smug little smile tugging at her lips. "Mr. Watson doesn't have time to see you. You should be grateful you're even getting 50 cents."

I turned toward Emily Wright, the senior accountant in finance, my voice coming out tight and rushed. "Ms. Wright, please, tell me, what exactly was my commission for last month?"

Emily's shoulders hunched as she shrank back, her eyes darting away from mine.

She stammered, "I-I really don't know. Ms. Watson handles all the commissions. Yours might actually just be 50 cents."

Sasha lifted her chin, that smug smile right back in place. "Hear that? I'm the one in charge of the books now, and 50 cents is all you're worth."

Refusing to accept it, I pulled out my phone and called Joe Watson.

To pay for Mom's treatment, I'd already drained my savings. I'd sold the house, sold the car, and I still owed the bank money. I was still 200 thousand dollars short of the surgery that could keep her alive.

The call went through, and the second he picked up, the words spilled out of me.

"Mr. Watson! Why is my commission only 50 cents? My mom is waiting on that money for her surgery deposit! You promised you'd pay me the full 200 grand as it says in the contract!"

The line on the other end went quiet for a few seconds before Joe finally spoke, his voice sharp with impatience.

"Cassian, your commission is only 50 cents. How are you getting 200 grand out of that?"

"Mr. Watson, you can't do that! My mom needs that 200 grand to stay alive—"

Before I could finish, Sasha reached over and slapped the phone out of my hand. It hit the floor, and the screen shattered on impact.

She rolled her eyes and toyed with her bright red nails as she snapped, "I told you it was only 50 cents! What are you freaking out about, you broke loser? You're so annoying!

"It's not like your mom is going to make it anyway. Those 50 cents are already generous for all your years of work. And if you're really that desperate, I'll even toss in another dollar.

"You can buy her a roll or something, so she doesn't die on an empty stomach."

My voice came out hoarse and raw. "Sasha, I dare you to say that again."

She planted her hands on her hips and sneered. "I could say it a thousand times, and your mom still wouldn't make it. Do you really think being the top in sales means something?

"This company will keep running just fine without you!"

I lifted my head and said, "Every dollar you stole from me, I'm going to make you cough back up."

She froze for a second, then let out a harsh laugh. "You? Don't make me laugh."

I stared at her smug face, my chest so tight it felt like it might burst. The last five years flashed through my mind like some sick joke.

Year after year, I'd been the top salesperson. I stayed up late with students, dragging the company back from the edge of collapse.

And now, the money that was supposed to save Mom had shrunk to 50 cents and a single dollar tossed in my face like charity.

A company like this wasn't worth another second of my life.

Last week, Zane Rimmer, the CEO of our competitor, Pinnacle Tutoring, personally offered me a few million dollars a year, plus bonuses. I still turned him down.

I kept thinking about how Joe had taken a chance on me back then, and everything we'd built together.

Screw that. I'd just been way too loyal for my own good.

I spun around and walked out of the office.

"Mr. Rimmer, this is Cassian Golding. Does that offer from last time still stand—"

Before I could finish, Sasha came barreling out from the corner and cut me off. "Well, well, Cassian. No wonder you're so full of yourself! Looks like you already lined up a new sucker to take you in."

She turned and raised her voice so the whole office could hear. "You all hear that? Cassian's jumping ship! Talk about being ungrateful."

A few coworkers who had been buried in their work looked up, their faces draining of color.

"Cassian's leaving? Then what's going to happen to our department?"

"He brings in 90% of our numbers. Where are we supposed to find clients now?"

"We're screwed. We're going to starve."

Sasha shot me a vicious look and jammed a finger at me, her blood-red nail inches from my nose.

"Uncle Joe only took you in out of pity. Without him paying for your schooling, you'd be panhandling on the sidewalk by now! And if the company hadn't fronted your pay, your mom would already be dead.

"You ungrateful bastard!"

I bent down and picked up my phone. The screen was spiderwebbed with cracks, but it still lit up. A rough laugh scraped out of my throat.

"Mr. Watson came to my place and literally got on his knees, begging me to join this company. I've done more than enough for this place. I've been here for five years, and I've been the top salesperson, year after year.

"Half the company's profits come from me. Last year, when we were about to go under, I was the one who closed a three-million-dollar deal and kept this place alive. What gives you the right to call me ungrateful?"

People around us gasped.

Sasha shrieked, "You're lying! Uncle Joe would never beg some broke nobody like you!"

I stepped forward until I was towering over her. "Want me to bring Mr. Watson in here and let him say it himself? He told me that if I joined this company, he'd pay every cent of my mom's medical bills.

"While he was on his knees for me, you were still playing in the dirt."

I lifted the 50 cents and gave a short, bitter laugh. "My mom is waiting for surgery right now, and this is his idea of 'covering everything.' 50 cents."

Sasha's face flushed red. She suddenly swung for my face. "I'll shut that filthy mouth of yours!"

I caught her wrist in midair and slapped her hard across the cheek. The crack of it rang through the office.

Sasha stumbled back, clutching her face, staring at me like she couldn't believe what had just happened.

The entire office fell dead silent.

Then I heard the sharp click of dress shoes at the door. Joe walked in. The moment he saw the red handprint on Sasha's cheek, his expression darkened.

His gaze snapped to me, his voice turning cold. "What happened? Cassian, did you hit Sasha?"

Sasha hurried to his side, tears instantly welling up. "Uncle Joe! Cassian's trying to jump ship. I just called him out on it, and he hit me! And now he's even telling people you had to beg him to join the company…"

Joe's face hardened by the second. He pulled Sasha behind him and pointed straight at me.

"Cassian, I was wrong about you. You close a few deals, and suddenly you think you're above everyone? Apologize to Sasha. Now!"

I took a step forward and snorted. "Why would I apologize? Mr. Watson, you're the one who owes me an explanation. The contract says 15% commission, clear as day. So why did I end up with 50 cents?

"You gave me your word. Did you forget? My mom is waiting for surgery, and you're here skimming the money that was supposed to keep her alive!"

Joe's brows knit, then his whole face seemed to sag. He let out a tired sigh.

"Cassian, I'm not skimming the money. Your mom being sick breaks my heart, too. Everyone in this company sees your numbers. We all know how hard you've been working.

"But you have to understand, the economy's in rough shape right now. We're in education and training, and we've been hit the hardest.

"Rent shot up, top instructors are charging more by the hour, and marketing is a money pit."

He spread his hands, looking almost painfully sincere. "Sure, last month you brought in 1.5 million dollars in sales. But once we knock out all the costs and overhead, there's barely any profit left.

"The finance team already did everything they could just to scrape together that 50 cents in commission for you."

I let out a short, bitter laugh. "No profit? Mr. Watson, do you think I'm an idiot? Even when the company was at its worst last year, our net profit margin was still around 50%.

"So how is it that now, with me bringing in 1.5 million dollars in sales, the profit suddenly drops to basically zero?"

I jabbed a finger at the performance chart still hanging on the wall. "Or is it that this sky-high 'cost' only applies to my numbers? Did all those expenses just magically vanish when it came to everyone else?"

Joe's face hardened, his voice turning cold. "Cassian Golding, watch your tone! This company has always treated everyone fairly."

My fists curled so tight my nails bit into my palms. "Fine. If you keep insisting the company is bleeding money and my commission is only worth 50 cents, then answer me.

"How did Sasha's personal bank account suddenly grow by 200 thousand dollars?"