Chapter 80: Financial Ruin

Emily's clothing company was doing really well. She got a bigger space for her boutique, and her designs were sold in several department stores around the country. She didn't want to tell Byron too much about it yet since he was suffering from the downturn of the economy and the artificial lowering of his stock thanks to Christine's machinations.

He got home much later than Emily did, but even in the evenings he would be on his phone talking to brokers and financial advisors.

The door to his home office was left half-open, and Emily peeked in after getting a midnight snack. Byron was on the phone, and he sounded desperate.

"I've got to have some capital hidden away somewhere," he was saying into the phone, which he clutched with a white-knuckled grip. "You already emptied those accounts? All of them? Damn!"

Emily couldn't hear what was being said on the other side, but it was clearly not good.

"We could get another loan from the bank..." Byron was saying. "Well, keep trying. Thank