I was overjoyed when I clinched a contract for $10 million. After months of hard work and long nights, the deal finally completed at 7:42 p.m. I thought the moment would stay with me forever. I was right about what I thought, but not for the reason I first thought.
The customer felt it would be a great idea for me to bring home a leather bag full of phony money to celebrate the win. The real money was in an escrow account, but I was curious about what would happen to the duffel bag. Very heavy and intense. Just the way he wanted it.
When I got home, Ria was there in silk pajamas with a glass of wine. “What’s that?” she questioned as she peered at the bag.
I smiled and said, “Ten million.” “Of course, it’s not real.” “Just a prop.”
She laughed, but she didn’t let go of the handle. “Do you believe in me?”
“Of course,” I said. “You are my wife.”
She said she would put it away for the night. I felt like a king as I went to sleep.
The next morning, she was gone. The bag was too. The battery on her phone was dead. A message that was crumpled up in the kitchen:
Thanks for the money, sweetheart. I’m giving my relationship another opportunity. Good luck with your new beginnings. — Ria
I stood there for a while, astonished. After that, I laughed. Long and loud.
Because of the bag? It was packed of fake money and has a hidden GPS tracker stitched into the lining.
She thought she had done the best job of stealing. But I have worked with sharks, liars, and people who are not honest. I’m ready to be betrayed. I had a video of her running away with Darren, my old gym buddy, and I was right there to see it happen.
When she contacted and was outraged since the money was fake, I told her gently, “You didn’t get robbed.” You broke the law.
I hung up the phone and called the police to report the theft.
At 10 a.m., they were both handcuffed outside a run-down rental cabin, crying and not knowing what to do. I dropped the criminal charges, but I made sure that the record of the arrest was still public. No closures. No favors.
On that day, my wife died. But I kept the money, the deal, and most importantly, my edge.
Ria’s lawyer begged me. “If this gets out, she’ll lose everything.” She had never gotten into trouble before. “Think about what her name means.”
I leaned back. “Oh, I am,” I said in a cold voice. “She’ll meet the next guy and he’ll look her up on Google and know exactly what she can do.” I looked him in the eye. “Wish her luck with her new start.”
A few days later, the police let Ria go on bond, but the harm was already done. Her world started to fall apart as soon as the arrest picture showed up on local gossip sites. There are no more friends. The next day, Job was let go. People on her social media dubbed her a “thief,” a “snake,” and a “gold-digging traitor.”
But her family did hurt her. Her mom sent me a quick email that stated, “John, I’m so sorry.” We weren’t sure. You didn’t deserve this. I didn’t say anything. I had already spoken what I wanted to say.
In the meantime, I rebuilt quietly but fiercely. There were no difficulties with the $10 million deal. My customer was so happy with how I dealt with the attempted theft that they told three new business partners about me. In a month, my business expanded into two new markets. I used Ria’s leaving to make my public brand even stronger, which was even better. I posted a LinkedIn post called “What I Learned About Business After Someone I Loved Tried to Steal Everything.” The piece got a lot of attention very soon. People asked me to give speeches, publish books, and make a documentary. Ria was trying to get back a reputation that had never really been hers in the first place.
After that, the last punch came. A package came to her new house, which was a little, low-income apartment that was completely different from the high-rise we used to live in. There was a fake banknote, a flash drive with the surveillance video on it, and a letter written in black ink inside.
This is what you stole. This is what you lost. That’s why I won’t care about you again. – J
There will be no threats of revenge or anger. Just an end. It is the kind of end that wraps around you like a noose: quiet, tight, and impossible to forget.
A year passed. Things can change quite rapidly when you get rid of the bad things in your life. I was no longer the man who put his faith in a duffel bag. I was smarter, sharper, and richer in every way that mattered. There were three more offices for the firm I had built from the ground up. I even started going on dates again, but in a gentle way. I didn’t need anyone else to make me full anymore; I had already done it.
Then, on the same day as the deal, I got a message from a fake account. There was no picture or name, just the words “You won.” I lost everything. I hope you’re content.
I didn’t have to ask who it was. I gazed at the message for a while and didn’t feel angry or happy. Just thinking. After that, I typed back:
Ria, you didn’t lose it all. You never got anything in the first place.
You can’t do that. Out of here. I never heard from her again. Sometimes the best way to get back at someone isn’t to cut ties with them. It’s about building castles on the ashes and letting them watch from a distance where they can’t do anything.
