In the end, the court ruled in my favor. Joel was ordered to pay over three hundred thousand dollars for the money I spent on him during our relationship, plus an additional two hundred thousand dollars for the stolen diamond ring. He was also required to publicly apologize to me on social media.
I thought that would be the end of it, but little did I know, things were about to get even messier. The company’s legal team discovered that all our mall’s membership data had been stolen. Customers were in a panic, flooding us with complaints.
My dad immediately called an emergency meeting with the IT department to investigate the breach.
The IT director looked frantic. “This isn’t the first time the data has been leaked. The last breach happened on New Year’s Eve, and that day, Tim came to the office.”
My dad had always trusted Tim and had never questioned what he did in the company. However, after a thorough check by the IT team, they found that Tim had accessed company computers under the pretense of copying files.
My dad immediately reported him to the police, and it turned out that Tim had been stealing customer information for years, selling it bit by bit to our competitors. This time, out of spite for my dad, he sold everything in one go.
When Esther found out, she stormed to the mall, screaming at me in front of everyone, “This is all your fault! You ruined my life!”
+25 BONUS
Chapter 8
Then, she turned to my dad, crying hysterically. You heartless old man! How could you call the cops on my dad? He worked for you for over ten years! Even if he didn’t do anything major, he still deserves some credit!
“And my mother! She took care of you for over a decade, and now no one knows where she is! It’s all your fault!”
At that moment, Joel appeared out of nowhere.
He pushed Esther aside and snapped, “How dare you blame Shirley? You’re the one who ruined my life! I was so close to marrying Shirley before you got involved!”
Before he could finish, Esther let out a cold laugh and whipped out a pregnancy report, screaming hysterically; “I’m pregnant with your baby!”
Joel’s face twisted in disgust. He turned away sharply, pushing Esther away with brute force.
His voice was cold and heartless. “You’re insane! What does that kid have to do with me? Don’t even think about pinning this on me!”
Esther staggered back from the sudden push and fell hard to the ground, letting out a pained
groan.
She curled up, clutching her stomach in agony. “My baby…”
Seeing his daughter in pain, Tim flew into a rage. He lunged at Joel, grabbing him by the collar,
“How dare you push my daughter!”
With that, Tim threw Joel toward the road.
What happened next was too fast to process–a speeding truck, the screech of brakes, the horrified screams of the crowd. Joel was flung into the air and landed hard on the pavement, blood pooling beneath him.
Chaos erupted. Esther stopped crying and stared blankly at the scene, as if she hadn’t fully grasped what just happened.
The police quickly arrived, sealing off the area and launching an investigation. Tim was taken into custody, and Esther was rushed to the hospital. Meanwhile, I stood there, watching the scene unfold, feeling like it was all some twisted joke.
Eventually, Tim was arrested for leaking corporate secrets and involuntary manslaughter. Esther lost the baby and spiraled into madness after the incident.
As for Clarice, after my dad divorced her, she disappeared. She had sent him a text saying she would kill herself if he didn’t forgive her, but my dad didn’t take it seriously. He blocked her on everything, cutting all ties.
In the end, A51 Mall became a national model of success, thriving year after year. And for me? My life was just beginning.
