Leaving the restaurant my sister owned, I was stopped by the manager.
Excuse me, sir, you haven’t paid your bill.
I looked at the unfamiliar face, assuming he was new and didn’t recognize me.
So, I politely explained, Just put it on my sister’s tab. She knows.
The male manager swept a dismissive glance over me.
“Sir, this is a Michelin three-star establishment. We don’t have a ‘tab’ system here.”
He finished speaking and handed me a printed bill.
I glanced down.
A single meal, fifty thousand dollars.
Utensil Radiance Maintenance Fee: Three thousand.
Exclusive Ambient Air Purification: Five thousand.
VIP Serenity & Emotional Support Service: Ten thousand.
And a bunch of other ridiculous charges.
I had no idea my sister ran such a shady business.
I laughed in disbelief.
“I’m Mia’s brother, the owner. If there’s an issue, she can come talk to me at home.”
But he wouldn’t let it go.
“If you can’t afford it, just say so. Don’t try to pull rank or pretend you’re family with our owner.”
I shot a text to my assistant: Tell my sister to either fire this guy or I’m pulling all my investments.
“Sir, don’t waste everyone’s time. Just pay up.”
His tone was full of smug certainty and biting contempt, as if he’d already pegged me as a cheap opportunist trying to leech off women to get ahead. A few curious stares from nearby customers were already drifting my way.
I frowned, not wanting to waste time on such a ridiculous situation. I pulled out my phone and dialed Mia’s number directly.
But all I got was a cold, robotic busy signal. I tried again, same result.
Workday. What the hell is she doing?
I lowered my phone, fixing my gaze on the aggressive man in front of me. I reiterated, word by word:
“I’m going to say this one more time. My name is Liam. I am Mia’s biological brother, your boss.”
“Her phone’s off right now, but you can check her credit card. My photo and information are linked to it.”
I thought this was the most direct and effective way to solve the problem.
But the male manager, Blake, after hearing my name, didn’t bother to verify. Instead, he burst into a loud, grating laugh.
He laughed so hard he nearly doubled over, drawing even more attention.
Then, he suddenly leaned in close, lowering his voice until only we two could hear him. “Still playing games? I’ve seen your face in Mia’s photo album countless times! You’re that persistent pest who always sticks his nose into our business! And now you have the nerve to waltz into her restaurant, trying to put your meal on her tab? Do you really think you’re someone important?”
I froze for a split second, glancing at his name tag C Blake. Then, an overwhelming sense of exasperation washed over me. Mia’s boyfriend, the one she’d kept so secret, refusing to even show me a single photo.
It was this stupid, malicious man standing right in front of me.
How could her taste be so utterly terrible?
Turns out, this fifty-thousand-dollar “sky-high bill” today wasn’t a misunderstanding at all. It was a premeditated setup designed to humiliate me.
Before I could even speak, he’d completely lost his patience.
“Since this gentleman wants to go dining and dashing, we’ll just have to detain him until the police arrive!”
He waved a hand, and two burly security guards, who had been standing by, immediately stepped forward.
They were two well-trained strongmen, and I was completely outnumbered. My resistance was quickly suppressed; my arms were twisted brutally behind my back.
I struggled violently but couldn’t break free from their professional hold. They ignored my furious glare and the alarmed looks of the other customers, roughly dragging me towards the back kitchen.
Then I was roughly shoved into a storage room reeking of stale food and harsh disinfectant. The door slammed shut, cutting off all light and sound from outside.
In the dark, the male manager, Blake, didn’t say a word. He raised his leather-shod foot and kicked me hard in the stomach.
The sharp pain made me gasp, my stomach churning violently.
“That’s for trying to freeload off my woman!”
“That’s for sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong!”
He screamed, his voice warped by jealousy and rage. He looked down at me, ordering the two strongmen, “Beat him! Teach him a lesson he won’t forget!”
The two security guards were clearly his loyal henchmen. Without hesitation, a relentless storm of punches and kicks rained down on me. I bit down hard, swallowing every cry of pain. My bones felt like they were being shattered, my internal organs dislocated.
His taunts continued. “What do you think you are? Nothing but a pathetic freeloader, living off his sister’s success!”
“I told you I’m her brother! If you don’t believe me, ask Mia! Call her right now, I’ll tell her!” I struggled to explain, but the man ignored me completely. Only when I started feeling dizzy did he raise a hand to stop them.
He nudged my shoulder with the tip of his leather shoe, looking at me triumphantly. “You’d better be a good boy and pay for that meal today, then cough up another hundred thousand dollars.”
“That’s what you get for meddling in my and Mia’s business and trying to use her money.”
“I’m not afraid of making a scene. Mia will sort it out for me.”
I was curled up in a ball, aching all over, weakly protesting, “That’s my own money. I told you, if you don’t believe me, ask her.”
His face changed. He kicked me, and the two security guards immediately understood, their punches and kicks raining down on me again. I knew he wouldn’t listen to anything I said. If this continued, I could really be in serious trouble.
After I coughed up a mouthful of blood, I used my last ounce of strength to grope for my phone on the floor.
“Stop… I’ll… I’ll pay.”
He seemed satisfied with my surrender. He motioned for the two security guards to stop, then squatted down and patted my swollen cheek. “See? Would’ve been easier to just do that from the start, wouldn’t it? You had to learn the hard way, huh?”
“One hundred thousand dollars. Not a cent less.”
I lay sprawled on the cold floor, gasping for breath, my lungs burning. I ignored him and dialed my friend Ryan’s number.
The call was answered quickly.
“Ryan, bring two hundred grand to my sister’s restaurant.”
“I need it now.”
Ryan paused on the other end, then sensed something was wrong. “Liam? What’s going on with you? Your voice sounds…”
“Don’t ask. Just hurry.” I cut him off and hung up.
Blake’s eyes lit up at the mention of “two hundred grand,” a flash of greed crossing his face. He probably thought I was scared silly and was offering more money to beg for mercy. The triumph on his face was now impossible to hide.
“Smart move.”
Ryan was incredibly fast.
Soon, the storage room door was violently pushed open from outside. Ryan stormed in with two bodyguards.
He was startled when he saw the blood on my mouth, my disheveled clothes, and my pathetic posture, propped on the ground. He rushed forward to help me up.
I shook my head, signaling him not to speak. I took the bank card with the sticky note on it from his hand and tossed it to Blake.
Blake took the card and didn’t bother me any further, waving a dismissive hand. “If that’s a fake card, I have ways of finding you. Now get out.”
I endured the agonizing, bone-deep pain throughout my body. With Ryan’s help, I limped out of that sickening place.
Once at the entrance, I thanked Ryan. “Thanks, buddy. I’ll get this money sorted out and pay you back quickly.”
He looked at me worriedly. “It’s just a small amount, don’t worry about it. But what happened to you?”
I let out a bitter laugh. “My sister found herself a wonderful boyfriend. I guess I need to have a little chat with her.”
I pulled out my phone and found the number for the restaurant’s deputy manager. He was the actual manager of the restaurant, someone I had personally recruited, and he was quite loyal to me.
The call connected. I didn’t waste a single word, my voice devoid of emotion. “You have ten minutes. Fire a manager named Blake.”
“Otherwise, our family will pull all investments from the restaurant. Every single penny. Gone.”
The deputy manager on the other end was already freaked out the moment he heard my voice. He must have detected the weakness and something wrong in my tone, agreeing frantically without daring to ask why.
I hung up without hesitation and immediately had Ryan drive me to the police precinct.
I stated everything that had just happened to the officer who received me, using the clearest, most logical terms. After giving a detailed statement at the station, I went to the hospital for a medical report detailing my injuries.
Holding that thin report, the anger of betrayal in my heart felt like gasoline poured on a raging inferno, burning hotter and fiercer.
I needed an explanation.
I needed Mia to give me an explanation, herself.
My assistant found Mia at her villa. My driver and bodyguards arrived, and we headed straight to Mia’s place. I had bought that villa for her years ago.
However, when I arrived, I was greeted by ear-splitting heavy metal music and the raucous sounds of men and women spilling from the windows.
She was throwing a party. No wonder she hadn’t picked up my calls.
The villa’s front door was ajar. A strange impulse kept me from pushing it open immediately.
Soon, I heard a familiar male voice.
It was Blake.
He was complaining to everyone in the room, portraying himself as a helpless victim, bullied by some arrogant third party and then unfairly blamed.
“…I just asked him to pay his bill, and he threw a hundred grand in my face, then got me fired!”
“Mia, he’s gone too far! He clearly has no respect for you!”
“He just wants to humiliate me, he just wants us to break up!”
Inside, Mia’s usual crowd of hangers-on indignantly echoed his sentiments. Mia was loudly comforting Blake in her arms, her voice full of tenderness and doting affection.
“Blake, don’t worry, I won’t let you suffer like this!”
Then, as if to prove her resolve, she vowed to everyone present, “When I find my brother, I’ll make him get down on his knees and apologize to you!”
Inside, the spoiled brats were still siding with Blake, shouting about how they would make me pay.
“Mia, just say the word, and we’ll go drag that guy out right now!”
“Yeah! Make him realize who truly calls the shots here!”
I couldn’t listen anymore. I raised a hand, and my bodyguard kicked the villa door open.
The party music ground to a sudden halt, and the raucous laughter vanished instantly. Dozens of startled eyes swung towards the doorway.
“No need to search. I’m right here. Who wants to teach me a lesson?”
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