"Ethan! You think you can fool me by finding some old man whose voice sounds like your dad?"

Victoria's voice came out shrill.

"It's gotta be one of your broke relatives! You people love these cheap, sleazy little tricks!"

Jason stepped forward and wrapped an arm around Victoria's shoulders.

"Victoria, don't waste your breath. People like him won’t learn their lesson until they face the consequences."

He turned to me, eyes full of malice.

"Ethan, you keep insisting the guy outside is Victoria's father. But she just talked to him this morning. So why don't we make her call him right now? Got the guts?"

"Victoria, call him! Shut this lunatic up once and for all!"

Victoria pulled her phone out of her clutch and hit dial, glaring at me the whole time.

"Ethan, the second this call goes through, you're getting on your knees and apologizing to Jason. Then you're walking out of my company and never coming back."

She switched to speaker so everyone could hear.

Ring... ring... ring...

It rang on and on. Nobody picked up.

"Victoria, he might still be on the plane. Phone might be off—"

"The flight from Vienna landed three hours ago. What are the odds his phone's just dead? Or maybe something's happened to him. Maybe he can't pick up."

I kept my voice quiet.

"Ethan, don't try this cheap scare tactic on me! My dad's phone is dead, or he's still mad at me, so he's ignoring my call on purpose!"

"I was a little harsh on him this morning because of the IPO. He's pissed at me. That's all it is. Yeah, that's all."

I saw a flash of something dark in Jason's eyes.

"Enough!"

Jason shouted, suddenly loud enough that the whole room turned.

He pointed at me and yelled at the guards.

"What are you all standing around for?! He's clearly trying to sabotage the IPO! He's jealous of Victoria—hold him! Don't let him near her!"

Two guards grabbed my arms.

I didn't fight them. Just stared coldly at Jason.

"Jason. What are you doing?"

Victoria seemed to come back to herself for a moment, frowning at him.

"Victoria, we've been played by this guy."

Jason walked right up to me.

"I saw him acting weird when he came near you. I think he stole something off you!"

Then he reached into my coat pocket.

"Look! What's this?!"

Jason held something up high. A men's wristwatch sat in his palm, the dial flashing under the lobby lights. Complicated face, alligator strap—the kind of piece that screamed money.

A limited-edition Patek Philippe.

The room exploded.

The whole thing was full of twists and turns, far more dramatic than any TV drama. The looks people were giving me now were pure disgust.

"I knew Ethan was off!"

"Broke and desperate. Victoria's been carrying him this whole time and he's stealing from her?"

"Probably his father was the one trying to swipe it. Jason caught him red-handed and put him in his place!"

"And the act about his dad not being dead? That was just cover. Disgusting."

"I didn't steal it."

I kept my voice level, eyes on the watch.

"Caught red-handed and still lying?!"

Victoria snatched the watch from Jason's hand.

"Ethan, you've completely lost it! A piece like this—you've probably never even seen one in real life. What, you were gonna pawn it? Or wear it around and pretend to be somebody?"

She walked right up to me and started slapping the watch face against my cheek.

"Look at you. You think you even deserve to touch this? Do you have any idea what it costs? I could sell you and that dead old man of yours together and not afford the strap!"

"Stealing. Cursing my father out in public. Ethan, you are rotten to the core."

The whispers around me got uglier. Filthier words drifted through the crowd.

Jason leaned in close, dropping his voice so only I could hear.

"Going up against me? Listen up, you broke piece of shit. This is what happens. Victoria's mine. The company's mine. And you and that dying old man of yours can rot in the gutter where you belong."

I ignored him and looked Victoria dead in the eye, her face still flushed with fury.

"Then call the police."

Victoria laughed like I'd told her the world's funniest joke.

"Ethan, you really think the cops are gonna believe the watch just walked into your pocket on its own?"

"Let me tell you—I don't care if God himself shows up today. You are not getting out of this!"

"Today is my IPO. You are not ruining this for me! Get him out of my sight!"

"I'm hiring the best lawyers money can buy, Ethan. A stolen watch worth millions, dozens of witnesses, evidence everywhere—plus the way you've been cursing my father in front of the whole company. You're going to prison. And you'll have all the time in the world to think about that pathetic little life of yours."

Jason chimed in immediately.

"Yeah, Victoria, we can't let him off! Scum like this needs a lesson, or he'll think we're a pushover. Call the cops! Throw the book at him!"