Page 33 of Property of Max
Foster grunts, already working on it. Cody leans back in his chair, gaze sweeping the table.
“There’s a video. Somebody posted it. And it’s going viral.”
Max’s head snaps toward him. “A video ofwhat?”
My stomach flips, heat crawling up my throat.
“Of Lila and Gumphrey,” Cody says flatly. “In his office. The night he fired her.”
Every set of eyes at the table shifts to me. The air in the room goes heavy, pressing down on my chest until my lungs forget how to work.
Cody already told them what happened. They know the story. But stories are one thing. Seeing it…seeingme…is another. And the second they watch, they’ll know the truth.
They’ll see my face. The way my shoulders slumped. The way I was about to step forward.
They’ll see my weakness.
Max will see it.
“Thank you,” Cody says, taking his phone back from Foster. His voice is clipped, hard.
“Alright. Here’s the message.”
The TV screen flickers, and suddenly the words fill the room in bold, ugly letters:
YOU FUCKING BITCH! YOU’LL PAY FOR THIS!
The silence that follows is sharp, brittle.
“The screenshot shows the number isn’t even programmed in your phone,” Knuckles says, his deep voice rumbling like distant thunder. “How do you know it’s from Gumphrey?”
Cody glances at me. I can feel the weight of the brothers’ attention closing in. My throat burns. Slowly, I shut my eyes and nod.
“Go ahead,” I whisper.
Cody doesn’t hesitate. He taps the screen, and Gumphrey’s voice fills the room, oily and mocking. The sound of his chair squeaking. My own voice, small, broken, whispering…
Less than fifteen seconds. That’s all it is. Fifteen seconds, but it feels like five endless minutes of my humiliation broadcast across their faces.
The room goes dead quiet.
I don’t look up. I can’t. My head bows, hair falling forward, hiding the tears I can’t stop.
They saw it. They saw my face. My hesitation. My shame. My acceptance.
Max saw it.
“I know this isn’t club business,” Cody says, softer now, but steady as stone. “And you don’t owe me a damn thing. But Lila’s my best friend, and this asshole? He’s capable of worse than just running his mouth. I’m scared for her.”
“Gumphrey’s got a record,” Foster adds grimly, eyes dark. “Two arrests for beating his ex-wife. Another for breaking and entering. Guy’s been skating by for years.”
Fear rips through me like ice water. I knew something was wrong with him. I just didn’t know how much.
“Exactly.” Cody squeezes my hand so tightly it almost hurts, grounding me. “She’s got a little girl at home, ten years old. And she’s the only one taking care of her brother, who needs round-the-clock care. The last thing she needs is some predator making her look over her shoulder every damn day.”
“Is there a way to find out who posted that video?” Spike asks, his voice low, controlled.
“I’m already digging,” Foster replies, reaching for his tablet again. “The account’s new, and that’s the only upload. Could take time, but I’ll find it.”
