Chapter 4

The next afternoon, I showed up at Shane's office.

I wasn't alone.

Liam was with me, along with two foremen whose wages Shane had failed to pay.

A crowd had already gathered outside the office. There were workers waiting for their unpaid wages, suppliers demanding payment, and a few people in the same industry who had heard what was happening and come to watch.

Shane was inside discussing how to split the money with Samuel.

When he looked up and saw me, he froze for a moment before plastering a smile across his face.

"Bro, you're here! I've got the contract all ready. All that's missing is your signature."

As he spoke, he pushed the contract toward me.

I didn't take it.

I looked around the office and smiled. I wasn't being loud, but everyone present could hear me clearly. "Shane, before I sign anything, there's something I want to make clear to everyone."

Shane's expression changed. He had a bad feeling about where this was going. "Bro, what are you talking about?"

I pulled the contract out of my bag and flipped to the third page in front of everyone. "You told me this contract was about going into business together and making money.

"So today, let's read what's actually written on the third page in front of everyone."

I cleared my throat and read slowly, word for word.

"Party B agrees to acquire all equity in Party A's company and assume full liability for all of the company's debts.

"That includes outstanding construction payments, unpaid workers' wages, material costs, external loans, and interest.

"Upon completion of the equity transfer, Party B will become the company's legal representative."

When I finished reading, the office fell terrifyingly silent.

The expressions on the foremen's faces changed immediately.

"Shane, what the hell does this mean? You owe us our wages, and now you want to dump this mess on Mr. Cameron?"

Shane's face turned bright red as he desperately tried to hold his ground. "What are you talking about? It's a partnership! I'm bringing him in so we can make money together!"

I ignored him and pulled several more sheets of paper from my bag. "Fine. Then take a look at this."

I laid out Shane's company's debt records one by one. "780 grand in construction payments were siphoned away. 230 grand in unpaid workers' wages. Not a single penny has been paid.

"More than 200 grand in outstanding payments to suppliers. And over 300 grand in high-interest loans you owe Samuel.

"Shane, your company has been insolvent for a long time, and yet you're telling me this is a guaranteed money-making project?"

Sweat instantly broke out across Shane's forehead. His lips trembled, but he couldn't get a word out.

I lifted my head and looked at Samuel, whose expression had already begun to turn sour. "And then there's Mr. Warthorn, whom you introduced as an investor.

"But I looked into him. He's not an investor at all. He's a private lender.

"Shane, you couldn't pay him back, so you planned to drag me into this and make me shoulder the debt for you. Am I wrong?"

Samuel shot to his feet. His face turned livid.

Shane panicked and blurted out, "Y-You're making things up! You wanted to sign the contract because you were greedy!"

I looked at him and slowly smiled. "Me? Greedy? Then why did you include the clause assigning all the debt to Party B?"

Shane opened his mouth, but not a single word came out.

I took a step forward. My voice remained calm, but every word came out clearly. "Shane, you treated me like a fool, used your workers as scapegoats, and tried to throw your own friend under the bus.

"Today, we're settling the score."

The foremen had already gathered around Shane, while other creditors peered through the doorway.

One worker pushed his way to the front. His voice turned hoarse from shouting. "Mr. Cameron, we believe you. We demand an answer today!"

I nodded. I then raised my phone, and my voice turned cold. "Shane, I'm going to ask you one last question.

"During dinner that day, didn't you tell me that once I signed, I'd become the legal representative and all the debt would be transferred to me?"

I looked straight at him. My thumb slowly moved toward the play button.

Shane's face instantly turned pale.