Chapter 4

After that, Richard made it a habit to show up at 5:59 PM sharp, dumping a stack of files on my desk. "I need these ready for the 8:00 AM briefing tomorrow."

I pulled all-nighters just to stay afloat, only for him to slap me with another 300-dollar "donation" fine the next morning for "misuse of company utilities."

By Friday, my entire three-month internship stipend had been drained.

That night, after dragging myself through another late shift, my dad finally called.

I gripped my phone until my knuckles turned white, the dam finally breaking. "Dad! Why wouldn't you pick up?"