Chapter 4 - The Debt Collector’s Visit
Grant’s fingers clawed frantically at the edge of the conference table. The arrogance that had defined his face for seven years was peeling away, exposing the hollow, desperate parasite underneath.
""Hazel, listen to me,"" Grant stammered, stepping toward her, his arms extended in a pleading gesture. ""You're angry. I get it. I made mistakes! The microphone... it was a joke! The wedding was under immense pressure! But we built this together! You can't let this criminal destroy what we started in that tiny kitchen on Elm Street!""
""Don't take another step,"" Raymond said.
The command wasn't loud, but it slammed through the room like a steel shutter. Grant stopped as though he had hit an invisible brick wall. Two of Raymond’s men shifted their coats, the black leather holsters underneath catching the bright morning light.
""You didn't build anything, Grant,"" Hazel said, her tone devoid of the pain that had kept her awake for two years. ""I built the curriculum. I designed the five-tier reading module. I wrote the grant proposals that secured your initial state funding. You merely filed the LLC under your name while I was in the hospital having our miscarriage.""
A collective gasp rippled through the older board members. Several of them exchanged horrified glances.
""You told me it was an administrative formality,"" Hazel continued, her voice razor-sharp. ""You told me you were protecting me from the stress. Then, three months later, you served me with divorce papers that excluded me from all intellectual property rights because I was 'only an unpaid consultant'.""
""That was business!"" Grant screamed, his facade completely shattering. ""You signed the waiver! It's legally binding! You gave it up!""
""Actually, she didn't,"" a new voice entered the room.
Arthur Vance, the city's most ruthless contract attorney, strolled through the doors carrying a sleek leather briefcase. He laid three identical blue folders directly in front of Hazel, Raymond, and Grant.
""Under Section 4-B of the State Intellectual Property Act, any transfer of copyrighted educational materials executed without independent legal counsel while the co-author is under medical sedation is null and void ab initio,"" Vance recited with surgical precision. ""We have the hospital logs from Saint Mary’s. Hazel was administered forty milligrams of morphine less than two hours before Grant Hollis presented that document to her hospital bed.""
Sloan buried her face in her hands, letting out a stifled shriek of despair.
""Furthermore,"" Vance added, ""Mr. Marquetti has purchased the outstanding debt notes on Hollis Academy from the three primary regional creditors. The debt stands at fourteen million, eight hundred thousand dollars. Default terms were triggered at eight o'clock this morning due to non-payment of interest.""
""That's impossible!"" Grant gasped, sweat dripping from the tip of his nose onto his silk tie. ""I have thirty days to cure the default!""
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""You had thirty days,"" Raymond corrected, leaning in close, his voice dropping to a terrifying, intimate whisper that pinned Grant to the floor. ""Until I bought the bank that held the note. As of right now, Hollis Academy is insolvent. The court has appointed Mrs. Hazel Marquetti as the sole receiver of all assets, copyrights, and physical locations.""
Raymond stood up, towering over the cowering ex-husband. ""You have thirty minutes to clear your personal belongings from this floor. Anything left behind will be burned on the sidewalk.""
