Chapter 5: The Threat
264 words
The cab ride home cost the last of the cash Preston had thrown in the mud. I limped up the stairs to my apartment, every step a fresh torture for my back. My key jammed in the lock, my fractured wrist useless, forcing me to use my left hand clumsily.
When I finally pushed the door open, I stepped onto an envelop lying on the floor. It was bright red. An eviction warning. "3 Days to Pay or Vacate." My stomach twisted into a knot so tight I gasped. But that wasn't the only delivery.
A courier was walking down the hallway. "Sarah Miller?" he asked, spotting me. He didn't wait for an answer. He thrust a thick, heavy envelope into my chest.
I numbly tore it open in the dim hallway light. The letterhead was embossed in gold: Sterling & Associates, Legal Division.
Civil Action: Sterling v. Miller.
My eyes scanned the legal jargon, the words swimming before me. He was suing me. The claim stated I had reversed into his Pagani while he was stationary. A fabricated lie so bold it took my breath away. And then I saw the number at the bottom.
$50,000.
I leaned against the peeling wallpaper, sliding down until I hit the floor. Fifty thousand dollars for a scratch on a car that cost more than my entire building. I needed a lawsuit defense attorney immediately. I needed debt consolidation. I needed a miracle.
Preston Sterling wasn't just satisfied with breaking my body; he was using civil litigation to hunt me down for sport. He wanted to crush me completely.
End of Chapter 5
