Chapter 271

Isabella Austin finally felt a wave of relief, though it only made her look down on Emily Blair even more—what a petty, small-minded woman.
Tossing her chin with a casual air, Isabella said, “Alright, name your price. How much do you want?”
Emily lifted her hand, raising a single finger right in front of Isabella’s face.
Isabella caught the gesture, her eyes brimming with disdain. “Five million?” That’s it?
The contempt in Isabella’s gaze deepened.
She’d expected Emily to ask for some outrageous sum, but as it turned out, five million was all? Typical—so small-time, she couldn’t even be ambitious about blackmail.
Emily said nothing.
Isabella scoffed and moved to leave. “Fine. Send me your account info and I’ll wire it over later.”
“Fifty million.”
Emily’s voice was calm and clear. Her eyes-stark, black and white-were cool as she slowly lowered her hand.
“I said fifty million. You misunderstood.”
Isabella’s voice shot up. “What? Fifty million?”
“How dare you ask for that much?”
Emily smiled. “Fifty million. No negotiating, no discounts. Not a penny less.”
Isabella’s glare could have frozen a river.
Fifty million.
Emily really had the nerve to ask for it.
“I don’t have fifty million. The most I can scrape together is ten.”
Emily shook her head. “Fifty million. Not a cent less. If you can’t meet my terms, Ms. Austin, then we’re finished. Maybe you’ll enjoy listening to that recording when it hits the internet.”
Isabella’s voice dropped to a harsh whisper. “No. That’s outrageous. I can’t pull together that much money on short notice.”
Emily gave a small, regretful shrug. “Then there’s nothing more to say.”
She turned to go.
Isabella’s glare could have burned a hole through Emily’s back.
After a few seconds of tense silence, Isabella called out, “Wait.”
Emily glanced back. “Yes?”
Isabella dug her nails into her palm, trying to keep her voice steady.
“Fine. Fifty million it is. I’ll send it once I have it together.”
Emily just shook her head with a smile. “No, Ms. Austin, I want the money today. I’m not waiting around.”
Isabella’s eyes narrowed. “Emily Blair, don’t push your luck.”
Emily didn’t bother with more words; she simply turned away, tossing a final comment over her shoulder.
“The choice is yours, Ms. Austin. What you do next is up to you.”
Isabella’s expression darkened, anger simmering beneath the surface.
Emily didn’t waste another moment. She left.
Back in her room, Emily pulled out her phone and sent a message to Elizabeth Wilson.
Emily: “Who’s that guy you posted about in your feed?”
It took a few minutes before Elizabeth replied: “Just some lunatic. Ignore him.”
Elizabeth followed up quickly: “He’s at it again. I can’t deal with this right now, talk later.”
Emily: “What’s going on?”
But Elizabeth didn’t answer again.
Emily tapped on Elizabeth’s profile and checked her feed.
There were no new updates, and nothing there to give Emily any further clues.
If Elizabeth really planned to start a business with Xavier Gonzalez, that partnership could become a major liability, given what Emily knew about Xavier and Isabella Austin.
But Xavier was talented. Without him, Elizabeth’s company might never have grown so quickly or succeeded as it had.
It would be a shame to lose him just because of Isabella.