Chapter 2 - The Midnight Strategy
By 1:30 a.m., Rachel dropped me off at my commercial facility on the North Side.
The building was dark, save for the warm glow of the overhead fluorescent light shining through the glass window of my administrative office. Elias was sitting at his desk, flanked by two people I recognized immediately: Arthur Vance, our company’s retained corporate attorney, and Brooke, our head baker, who was sitting on a folding chair holding a thick binder of operational logs.
When I stepped through the door, my eyes blackening and my nose encased in a white plastic medical splint, Brooke let out a sharp breath.
"Oh, Maya," Brooke whispered, standing up to pull me into a gentle hug. "Look at what she did to you."
"I look like I took a wrong turn in a boxing ring," I said, forcing a weak smile as I sat down across from Arthur. "How bad is the damage with the network?"
Arthur Vance was a razor-sharp corporate attorney in his late fifties with silver hair and a reputation for crushing contract disputes before they reached a courtroom. He adjusted his glasses and laid out three printed documents across the desk.
"The procurement director at Regional Healthcare, a gentleman named David Sterling, is spooked," Arthur said bluntly. "He’s an executive under immense pressure to ensure seamless dining and nutritional operations across six medical centers. When an email arrives from someone with the exact same last name as the CEO, claiming to be a concealed co-founder and raising safety flags, his legal department automatically freezes onboarding."
"How long do we have before they exercise their thirty-day unilateral termination clause?" I asked.
"David Sterling gave us until 5:00 p.m. tomorrow to provide three things," Arthur replied, tapping his finger against the paper. "First, absolute legal proof that Vanessa Cole holds zero equity, zero operational control, and zero employment history with Gather and Grain. Second, a formal corporate statement addressing her claims of operational deficit. And third, a guarantee that her domestic dispute with you will not spill over into their healthcare facilities."
Elias leaned forward, his face dark with exhaustion and anger. "She didn't just write a casual complaint, Maya. She attached old spreadsheets from Velvet Table that showed joint vendor accounts we shared three years ago when you were helping her with her logistics. She took your kindness from three years ago and twisted it into evidence of a joint venture."
I pressed my cold palms against the desk. "I kept every bank record, Elias. Every single one."
"What do you mean?" Arthur asked, leaning in.
"When I worked for Velvet Table, I made sure every dollar she paid me was processed through a formal 1099 contractor agreement," I explained, the meticulous bookkeeping habits I’d maintained for four years finally coming to my rescue. "And when Velvet Table went under, I bought my two commercial ovens from her bankruptcy trustee through an official, court-approved bill of sale. I didn't steal her ideas. I bought her surplus equipment legally from an auctioneer!"
Arthur’s eyes lit up behind his wire-rimmed spectacles. "Do you have the bankruptcy bill of sale?"
"In my filing cabinet right behind you," I said. "And I have four years of state tax filings showing I am the 100% sole member LLC owner of Gather and Grain."
"Good," Arthur said, a cold, predatory smile spreading across his face. "We have the documentation to satisfy David Sterling. But that only solves the client problem. Maya, what do you want to do about your sister?"
The office went completely silent. The hum of the commercial refrigerators in the adjacent room vibrated through the floorboards.
May you like
I looked at my reflection in the dark office window—the splint on my nose, the blue bruises blooming beneath my eyes, the faint dried blood still caught along my hairline.
"I want a emergency restraining order filed at the Cook County Courthouse at 8:00 a.m.," I said, my voice steady and unwavering. "And then, Arthur, I want you to file a civil lawsuit against Vanessa Cole for tortious interference, defamation, and commercial fraud. I am going to make sure she never touches my business again."
