Chapter 3

The next morning, I headed to the company with a labor contract to negotiate my case.

I spotted Leonard smoking by the entrance when I made it to the building.

Leonard hastily approached me when he noticed me, exclaiming, "Oh, my God, Mike! Guess what? Mr. Gordon's in big trouble. He's practically being cooked in the hot water that he's landed himself in."

He excitedly stubbed out his cigarette before continuing, "His wife, Cassidy, was hospitalized last night because her head got scalded."

"What happened?" I asked.

"She went to South Shores for dinner last night. When she asked the waitress to refill her glass, the waitress accidentally tripped over her own two feet and splashed the entire jug of hot water on her head.

"Lily already visited her. She truly had such rotten luck. I'm sure that you're aware of how much Cassidy treasures her hair. She had no choice but to shave her entire head bald."

Just then, Frank strode out of the building. His face was deathly pale as he clutched his phone and tapped his foot impatiently.

"Also, Mr. Gordon ran his mouth after drinking too much during the dinner with an investor last night," Leonard explained. "Wanting to toot his own horn, he admitted that he has internal resources to secure approvals.

"Guess what happened next? Unfortunately for Mr. Gordon, someone recorded him at that time. The recording spread like wildfire throughout the entire industry this morning. Not wanting to be involved, many investors retracted their funding and blacklisted him."

A sense of satisfaction spread through my chest as I took in Frank's haggard appearance.

He was paying for the consequences of his actions. How dare he withhold my salary from me and allow Cassidy to accuse me of extortion?

Frank sighed heavily as he sat on the edge of the flowerbed. Our eyes met when he suddenly whipped his head up. He was briefly stunned before he threw himself at me, stumbling over his own two feet.

I nearly jumped out of my skin. "What are you doing? Stay away from me!"

Frank fell to his knees with a loud thud right there in the middle of the sidewalk.

Nosy passersby formed a circle around us. Some even pulled out their phones and began recording.

"I've learned my lesson, Mr. Fulton! I shouldn't have withheld your salary!" Frank exclaimed, grabbing my leg and smearing his tears and snot on my pants. "You're a benevolent man. Please lift the curse! I'll double your salary. I'll even triple it! I'm even willing to grovel at your feet if that's what you want!"

I tried retracting my leg, but Frank was gripping it as if his life depended on it, refusing to loosen his hold.

"I… To be honest with you, I don't know how to lift the curse," I said in a panic, sweating profusely. "Please get up, Mr. Gordon. There are so many people watching. This is so embarrassing."

"I won't! Not until you lift the curse!"

Leonard pulled out his phone and began recording us. "This is crazy! It'll definitely make rounds on TikTok. I'll caption it 'The Evil Boss Gets on His Knees and Begs His Employee to Lift the Curse.' I'll get tens of thousands of likes for sure!"

I heard a buzzing in my head as I looked between Frank and the crowd, who were recording us with their phones.

"I really don't know how to take it back, Mr. Gordon," I said, swallowing nervously. "Why don't… Why don't you pay me the salary that you owe me first? Perhaps the curse will break once I receive the money."

Frank nodded vigorously. "Okay! I'll do that! I'll wire the money to you right now!"

His entire body was trembling as he wired the money to me.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I received the notification from the bank. "I've received the money, Mr. Gordon. As for the curse… I hope you're prepared to deal with it."

Frank paled upon hearing my words. He grabbed my wrist and exclaimed, "I'll hand the company over to you, Mike. Please have mercy on me."

A ruthless glint flickered in his eyes as if he were ready to bet everything on his decision. It was blatantly obvious that he was trying to foist his failing company on me.

I stared at him with wide eyes.

How dare he try to drag me into his mess?