Liam sat at his desk, the termination letter spread out before him like a winning hand.

He’d read it four times. Each pass made the loophole clearer, and each time his smile grew a little wider. Mrs. Harriet had made a mistake, a costly one, and now he had exactly what he needed to make her feel it.

He couldn’t just sit on it, though. He needed her to know he’d found it. More than that, he needed to watch her face when she realized it.

A phone call was too easy to dodge. Texting was better, it was permanent, and traceable, but even that felt thin for what he was about to do. He needed to be in the room so he could read her facial expression.

He picked up his phone and typed a message down.

[Liam: Hello Mrs. Harriet, I’d like to meet with you. In person. Is that possible?]

He set the phone down.

The response came in under twenty seconds which was a record time.

[Mrs. Harriet: Of course, Liam. I was hoping you’d reach out. When are you available?]

He stared at the timestamp. Twenty seconds. For a woman in her position, that was practically immediate — not enough time to even read the message twice.

"She is so darn desperate," he thought.

[Liam: Tonight. 7 PM.]

[Mrs. Harriet: Perfect. I’ll have my assistant book a table at The Metropolitan Grill. Don’t worry about the bill, I’ll handle everything. Order whatever you’d like, I will be a few minutes late.]

Liam read it again. Then a third time.

The Metropolitan Grill was one of Seattle’s most prestigious steakhouses. White tablecloths, crystal chandeliers, a wine list that could double as a financial liability. And she was offering to cover all of it.

"She thinks I’m broke," he realized. "She thinks I lost everything — the job, the girlfriend, the footing. To her, he was still the unemployed former associate with nowhere to land. I bet she thinks I want to beg for my job back, what a bitch!"

She wasn’t entirely wrong about his situation a week ago. But things had shifted considerably since then.

He had over a hundred thousand in his account, and Mrs. Harriet had no idea. Let her keep assuming, desperate people were predictable people.

The meeting was set, that gave him a few hours, and he needed to use them well.

Liam opened his laptop and started drafting. The document would be clean and precise, aA summary of the termination, the specific language of Section 14, Paragraph B, and the clear policy violation buried inside it.

On the surface, a gesture of professional courtesy. Underneath, an unmistakable message: I know exactly what you did, and I can burn it all down.

But he couldn’t walk in there alone. He needed someone sharp beside him — someone to help build the case and, if it came to it, serve as a witness should it go to court.

He already knew who to call for help and that person was Darren.

Darren picked up on the third ring, his voice tired but alert.

["Liam? You okay?"] Darren was quick to answer and the urgency in his voice was evident.

"Better than fine, actually." Liam leaned back. "I need your help with something. Legal business. I’m meeting my former boss tonight about a termination that may have been irregular."

["Irregular how?"]

"I’ll walk you through everything when you get here. Can you come over?" Liam requested.

A brief pause. ["Yeah. Give me thirty minutes."]

"Thanks. I owe you one."

["You already covered my rent. We’re even."’

Liam smiled. "We’re not even. But we will be."

He hung up and went back to the document to finish up the draft.

-

The next thirty minutes moved quickly — typing, revising, sharpening each line until the argument was airtight. By the time the knock came at the door, he had a solid draft waiting.

Darren looked better than the last time Liam had seen him. Less worn down, more present. Whatever they’d talked about before had clearly done something.

"Come in." Liam stepped aside.

Darren walked in and scanned the apartment. "You finally cleaned up."

"It was never a mess. Technically." Liam closed the door. "And it’s company housing — which is actually part of what we need to discuss."

They settled at the kitchen table. Liam laid it all out — the termination letter, the loophole, the meeting, the document. Darren listened the whole way through without cutting in.

When Liam finished, Darren let out a slow whistle.

"You’ve got her," he said. "You know that."

"That’s the idea."

"What’s the end game? Money?"

Liam shook his head. "Not yet. I want to see how she handles the pressure first. If she folds, I’ll use it for recommendations and connections — doors she can open for me. Things that matter more right now than a settlement."

"And if she doesn’t fold?"

"Then we go to court, and I walk away with a very large check." Liam shrugged. "Either way, I come out ahead."

Darren leaned back, a grin spreading across his face. "You know, when we were in college, I never would’ve seen this coming from you. You were always so straight. So by-the-book."

"I still am," Liam said. "The book just has more pages than I realized."

"Right." Darren laughed. "So what do you need from me tonight?"

"Come with me. Backup, and a second set of eyes on the final draft before we print it."

"Done."

They spent the next hour tightening the document together. Darren wasn’t a lawyer, but he was sharp and detail-oriented, and his instincts caught two things Liam had glossed over. By the time they finished, it was clean enough to stand on its own in any room.

Liam checked the clock. 6:30.

"Time to move," he said, reaching for his jacket.

Darren stood and cracked his knuckles. "Let’s go."

Liam grabbed the printed document and they walked out together into the cool evening air.

It was finally time.