Chapter 91 Transfer
JAMES’ POV
"So, did you end up apologizing to her?” My mom asked, and I nodded, looking at my laptop.
I didn't know why I even kept looking at my laptop. The only thing I could see was the dwindling sales, the hating emails that made things worse. Maybe I was just waiting for my termination letter from Greenleaf Med. That was the last thing that could as well ruin my life.
“I did. It did nothing. She already said she wasn't going to help me with the drug.”
My mother sighed. And for the first time, I could see something that was never there whenever she looked at me. Disappointment.
“You can never really do enough. First off, you go and claim that you were the producer of her own drug. And now, you can't even beg her properly to fix it for you. What do you want me to tell those people I've bragged about you to?”
I held myself back from rolling my eyes. “That should be the least of your problems, Mom. I'm losing everything.”
“And whose fault is that?” My mom snapped back.
Just as I was about to shut the laptop down, there was a new notification that popped up. It caught my eye immediately. It was from the bank.
A transfer worth thousands of dollars. In a restaurant.
The only other person who had my card was… Melissa. My hands were already balled into fists as I waited for her.
“What happened?” My mom asked, gaining my attention immediately.
“There was a withdrawal from the account.”
She frowned. “I thought you said you were running low on cash.”
“I was,” I said over gritted teeth. “And it's a lot worse now.”
Just as I was speaking, I heard the front door open. Melissa walked in, kicking her shoes off. As expected, she was about to walk past my mom. She at least had the grace to glance at me, giving me a small wave.
“Where do you think you're going?” I asked, and she blinked twice, before walking over to me.
“What did I do this time?” She asked harshly.
“You spent from my account. The little money we have left. Thanks for letting us go from thousands to hundreds over a meal that you probably didn't finish.”
“It was The Simons. Of course, I finished every last grain.”
The name of the restaurant brought back memories. It was the one place that Anna always wanted me to take her whenever the two of us finally made enough money to afford a meal there. And now, Melissa went there and squandered the little we had left.
“Do you even use your brains at all?” I asked, taking a step towards her. I saw the tears flash in her eyes for just a second. Good. That was the reaction I wanted.
“I sure do, because I was busy laying ground for us, while you were busy sulking.”
“How?” I asked, and she quickly looked away. She was just bluffing. “You don't have a job of your own. All you've done so far is stick around and suck me dry.”
“You should have seen it from the beginning,” my mom spat, eyeing Melissa with contempt.
“I've always been trophy wife material, James. It's your job to maintain what I have. From my skin to my clothes, to my bills.”
I could feel my skin burn up. My hands were balled into fists at my side, but I couldn't even react. I made this choice. And look how useless it ended up being.
Melissa walked past me, heading upstairs. “Besides, I don't even understand what you're fussing over the drug for. She has already released the right one.”
I froze.
“What are you talking about?” I asked. My mom's gasp followed my question.
“Turn on the television, James. Don't be an idiot.”
With that, she headed upstairs. “Your wife barely has any regard for even you.” my mom muttered, but that was the least of my problems.
I quickly grabbed the remote, turning on the news channel. True to Melissa's words, the first headline that was there was 'Quinn Foundation Releases Affordable Permanent Cure for Chronic Eczema.'
I felt my legs buckle. I shook my head. The only person who would have been able to release something like that was Anna. She wouldn't have deceived me. Not when I let go of my whole pride and apologized to her as my life depended on it.
“It might not be her,” my mom said.
“She's the only one who knows that much about drugs. The only one that can release something that powerful.” I said without even thinking. “She betrayed me.”
“So what do you want to do?” My mom asked. I could see the fear in her face now. “Things will only go downhill from here.”
The other investors and medical boards must have gotten the news. The only thing they would want to do is take my medical license away. I couldn't let that happen.
“Maybe if you come with me to apologize to her, then she would accept.”
I waited for her to disagree. But this time, she nodded readily. “Anything that affects you, affects me. Even if it's because of your stupid choices.”
“I'll get the keys,” I said, looking for the keys from the dining table, where I had dumped them the previous night. I could feel a bit of relief as we headed out of the house.
There was no way I was going to leave Anna's house if she didn't accept, and show me the right measurements for the drug. I could produce a drug that works more slowly than hers. I just wanted to save my image.
At any cost.
My mom got into the passenger seat without any hesitation. I drove there, not minding the speed limit. I kept looking behind me to see if any police officers were going to stop me. Thankfully, there was none.
“Is this it?” My mom asked, and I nodded. “She got much more wealth than you would ever work to get.”
I wanted to give her a savage reply, but it was going to be of no use. She was right. It was going to take years of hard work to have what Anna currently had without doing a thing. How many times were poor people picked up on the road by their rich parents who got separated from them?