My mother was standing in my kitchen when she decided my brother’s family was moving into my house.

At 4:00 PM—one hour before my mother’s blackmail deadline—we held a press conference in the main auditorium of Vance & Sterling LLP’s downtown headquarters.

Creswell had contacted four major local news outlets, promising a major announcement regarding corporate extortion and real estate fraud.

Cameras flashed as I stepped up to the podium, wearing a tailored navy suit. Sitting in the front row were three high-ranking corporate investigators, along with Detective Miller from the local police precinct.

“Good afternoon,” I began, my voice echoing clearly through the microphone. “Over the past forty-eight hours, false and malicious allegations have been circulated regarding my personal estate and my corporate entity, Birwood Residential Holdings.”

I pulled up a digital slide on the massive screen behind me.

It displayed certified bank ledgers, land title documents, and municipal inspection reports.

“For six years,” I continued, staring straight into the news cameras, “I have personally subsidized the housing of my biological mother, Loretta Fontaine, absorbing over eighty thousand dollars in living expenses. Yesterday, my brother, Tamson Fontaine, was arrested while attempting a violent, armed breach of my private residence—an incident captured on high-definition video.”

I pressed a button on the remote.

The video footage played on the large screen. The news reporters gasped as they watched Tamson screaming, swinging a tire iron at my gate, and shouting that my money belonged to him.

Then, I displayed the text message Loretta had sent me at 9:00 AM—the explicit attempt to trade Tamson’s release and a corporate job for hiding the smear post.

“Extortion is a crime in the province of Ontario,” I said cleanly. “Today, Vance & Sterling LLP has officially filed a five-million-dollar civil defamation lawsuit against Rochelle Fontaine, alongside formal criminal extortion charges filed with the Crown Attorney against Loretta and Tamson Fontaine.”

The room erupted into a flurry of questions.

“Ms. Fontaine! Is it true you’re evicting your mother?!” a reporter shouted.

“My mother’s lease agreement reached its natural expiration,” I replied smoothly. “Due to ongoing safety threats against my family and corporate assets, all secondary financial subsidies provided to the Fontaine family have been permanently terminated. Thank you.”

I stepped back from the podium, leaving the media in a state of absolute shock.

As I walked out of the auditorium with Creswell, my phone buzzed in my pocket.

It was a text from Rochelle: