Chapter 27 Chapter 27
“Because we are here to meet with top-level management of Diamond Bank,” Deborah continued arrogantly, “and they are certainly not going to let your bad luck or that disgraceful title of ex-convict ruin what we came here for.”
She lifted her chin proudly, her voice swelling with self-importance.
“Vincent is making serious headway now. Very soon, his name will be on the lips of everyone—every business owner, every major company, every serious investor. Everybody will want to be associated with him.”
Jessica nodded eagerly beside her, smiling as though she were basking in Vincent’s rising glory herself.
“And that is exactly why people are beginning to extend their hands toward our family,” Deborah went on. “They know the kind of level Vincent is entering, and they want to stay close to us so that we can speak well of them in his ears.”
Then her face twisted with disdain again.
“So you see? You were never fit for him. You were never enough. You were never capable of standing beside someone like Vincent.”
Her eyes flashed with warning.
“So leave now, before I do something truly terrible to you.”
For a brief moment, there was silence.
Then Megan let out a quiet, bitter scoff.
“What?” she said, her voice low but cutting. “It seems I never truly knew any of you from the very beginning.”
Her eyes moved from Deborah to Jessica, carrying years of hurt that had long since hardened into clarity.
“All of you,” she said, “every single one of you in the Bushman family, played me for a fool.”
Her tone deepened.
“You deceived me. You made me believe I was welcome. You made me think you cared. You made me think you had my back.”
She paused, then added with painful honesty, “And yes, I foolishly agreed to take the fall for what Vincent did.”
The words landed sharply.
“And I paid for it with five whole years of my life.”
Deborah and Jessica both stiffened, but Megan didn’t stop.
“Though honestly,” she continued, “I wouldn’t even call it suffering anymore. Because being there opened doors I never expected. It changed things in ways you could never understand.”
Her face turned calm, almost frighteningly calm.
“So call me an ex-convict all you want. I do not care. It means nothing to me now.”
Then she stepped forward slightly, her gaze steady and unafraid.
“But hear me clearly this will be the last time any of you will stop me when you see me and stand in my face uttering rubbish.”
Her voice sharpened.
“This is the last time.”
“What just happened here is nonsense, and it will not repeat itself again.”
Then her eyes moved deliberately to Deborah.
“And imagine,” Megan said with quiet scorn, “you call yourself a silver card holder.”
She let the insult hang for a beat before adding, “Then what about people who actually own Diamond cards?”
Immediately, both Deborah and Jessica burst into even louder laughter.
They laughed so hard it was almost theatrical.
Deborah pressed a hand to her chest as though Megan had said the most ridiculous thing she had ever heard.
“Did you hear that?” Jessica said between laughs. “A Diamond card holder?”
Deborah wiped at the corner of her eye, still laughing.
“What a joke,” she sneered. “So not only are you an ex-convict, you are also a bloody liar.”
Her voice hardened with malice.
“In fact, because of this lie alone, you deserve to be thrown back into prison for another five years.”
Jessica joined in immediately, mocking Megan’s tone.
“Just imagine,” she said, mimicking her, “‘a Diamond card carrying member.’ What a joke.”
She shook her head with exaggerated disbelief.
“You think we are babies here? Do you even know what it means to be a Diamond card holder?”
Her expression turned smug.
“A Diamond card holder is not some random nobody. That is someone who owns shares in this bank. Not just ordinary shares, but a significant amount of shares enough to actually carry that kind of status.”
Then she folded her arms and looked at Megan as though she had exposed her completely.
“So you want to stand here and tell us that you own shares in Diamond Bank?”
Her laugh returned, sharp and contemptuous.
“How is that even possible? It is impossible.”
She pointed away from them.
“So stop telling your pathetic lies and get out of our sight immediately.”
Deborah was just about to speak again when Megan calmly slipped her hand into her pocket.
Her expression did not change.
There was no panic on her face, no haste in her movement, no sign that the insults thrown at her had shaken her in the slightest.
Then, in one smooth motion, she pulled out a card.
A Diamond card.
The very same one Oliver had left for her at the mansion.
She held it up between her fingers and looked straight at them.
“Isn’t this the almighty Diamond card you both have been talking about?” she asked.
The effect was immediate.
Deborah froze, Jessica froze too.
For a moment, neither of them could even breathe properly.
Their jaws dropped as their eyes locked onto the card in Megan’s hand.
The mocking confidence that had filled their faces only seconds ago vanished completely, replaced by naked shock.
Because it was real.
That was no ordinary card.
That was truly a Diamond Bank Diamond card.
For a brief, stunned second, their minds simply refused to process what they were seeing.
How was that even possible?
What was a card like that doing in Megan’s possession?
How could Megan, of all people, be holding something of that status?
What exactly was going on?
Deborah’s thoughts spun rapidly, trying to force the situation into something she could still control, something she could still understand.
And very quickly, she settled on only two explanations.
It had to be fake, or Megan had stolen it.
There was no other possibility she was willing to accept.
Immediately, Deborah’s stunned expression twisted into outrage.
“So you think you can fool us with this cheap trick?” she snapped. “You and I both know and everybody here would know that there are only two explanations for this.”
She pointed sharply at the card.
“Either that card is fake, or you stole it from someone.”
Jessica quickly recovered enough to jump in, eager to support her mother.
“Yes, exactly,” she said. “That is the only explanation. It is either fake, or you stole it.”
Her eyes flashed with cruel satisfaction as she folded her arms again.
“And if it is fake, and you are actually trying to enter Diamond Bank with a fake Diamond card, pretending to be a Diamond card holder, then you are going straight back to prison.”
She laughed coldly.
“And this time, you will not accuse us of setting you up or blackmailing you into anything. No. This time, it will be because of your own stupidity your own foolishness.”
Her voice rose with contempt.
“Just imagine trying to use a fake Diamond card to enter Diamond Bank.”
Then she took a step closer, lowering her voice into something even more poisonous.
“And if it turns out not to be fake, then that means you stole it. Which would make perfect sense, wouldn’t it? A thief and an ex-convict bad character on top of bad character. That kind of nature does not just disappear.”
She gave a cruel smile.
“So whether it is fake or stolen, one way or the other, you are going back to jail.”