All Chapters of I Was the Joke: Now I'm the Punchline They Fear: Chapter 1
- Chapter 6
6 chapters
The Divorce Party
The champagne flowed like water through the Bradford mansion, and Marcus Chen stood in the corner watching his marriage die to the sound of laughter.He'd positioned himself near the marble pillar by the east wing entrance, far enough from the crowd to be forgotten, close enough to fulfill his purpose for being there. The pillar was cool against his shoulder , a small comfort against the suffocating heat of two hundred people in the hall.Designer dresses swished past him. Expensive cologne mixed with the scent of imported roses that Judith Bradford had flown in from Ecuador for the occasion. Everything in this house was excessive. Everything except his worth."More champagne, sir?"Marcus glanced at the young server, who couldn't be more than twenty-two, probably working his way through college. "No, thank you," Marcus said quietly.The server nodded and moved away, and Marcus returned his attention to the dance floor where his wife—soon to be ex-wife—swayed in the arms of another
My Stepbrother?
Marcus woke up to the sound of sirens.They were distant, probably three or four blocks away from his small studio apartment in Queens. The walls were thin enough that he could hear Mrs. James next door arguing with her daughter about college applications. Below him, someone was playing salsa music at six-thirty in the morning. Marcus lay still for a moment, staring at the water stain on the ceiling that looked vaguely like a bird in flight. The wine-stained shirt lay crumpled on the floor where he'd dropped it. Marcus's phone buzzed on the milk crate he used as a nightstand. He'd received seventeen calls since last night. Five from blocked numbers. Three from Victoria's lawyer. Nine from Bradford Industries' HR department.Checking his phone, the text message from last night sat in his phone like a bomb with an unknown timer. “Welcome home, Young Master”.Only a handful of people in the world would call him that. And only one would have the audacity to send that message last night
Ghost Of The Past
The Mercedes moved through Queens but Marcus barely noticed. His mind was still processing Victor's words, turning them over like puzzle pieces. “Daniel, my brother, seduced my wife”."Where are we going?" Marcus asked."Somewhere private," Victor replied, his eyes on the road. "Somewhere we can talk without interruption. Your father owns a building in Tribeca. He uses it for... sensitive meetings.""Does he know you're taking me there?"Victor's lips curved in something that wasn't quite a smile. "He knows I found you five years ago, Young Master. He ordered me to watch but not interfere. What he doesn't know is that I've been compiling my own records of everything that's happened to you against…”.Marcus looked at Victor in the rearview mirror. "Against what?""Against..." Victor paused, choosing his words carefully. "Against the possibility that you might need leverage against your own family.""Why?" Marcus asked. "You're loyal to my father. You've served him for thirty years."
My Mother
"They were always going to frame you," Victor corrected. "That was part of the plan. The divorce was step one. Step two was supposed to be this: file criminal charges, have you arrested, and use the scandal to distract from their own financial crimes. With you in prison and disgraced, nobody would look at Bradford Industries' real problems.""When?" Marcus asked. "When were they planning to do this?""According to the communications I intercepted, they were going to wait a few months. They want you to feel comfortable. Then, they'd strike when you least expected it." Victor's jaw tightened. "But Cameron's visit this morning might have accelerated their timeline. If he reports back that you refused their offer and assaulted him—""I didn't assault him.""You put your hands on Bradford. That's all the story they need." Victor gestured to another stack of papers. "These are pre-written police reports, witness statements from Bradford Industries employees who'll swear they saw you acting
A Meeting With The Monster
The next day at exactly seven forty-five PM , Marcus stood in front of a full-length mirror in the conference room bathroom, gazing at himself. "You look like you're preparing for war," Victor said from the doorway.Marcus glanced at him. "Aren't I?""That depends on what you want”.Marcus turned from the mirror, looking at the card on Victor’s hand. "The Velvet Room. What is it?""It's a private club in Midtown. Victor handed Marcus the small card. "Show this to the host and he'll take you to your father's private room."Marcus put the card inside his pocket. "Will you be there?""I won't be inside. Your father said you should come alone, and he'll know if I'm there. But I'll be nearby. If things go badly..." Victor pulled back his jacket slightly, showing the gun he placed at his hip. "If things go badly, I'll know."Marcus straightened his tie one final time. "I spent five years believing I could escape him. I was wrong about that.""Were you?" Victor asked. "Or were you just f
My Own Terms
Marcus spent the night surrounded by evidence of his own destruction.The conference room had become his war room. Victor had left him alone around midnight with a promise to return at dawn. The cork boards on the wall were no longer just documentation—they were a battle map. He'd rearranged photos, drawn new connections in markers, and identified weaknesses in his enemies' armor.The Bradfords weren't just cruel. They were sloppy. Desperate. And desperation made people careless.When Victor returned at six AM with coffee and bagels, he found Marcus standing in front of the wall, still wearing yesterday's suit, eyes red but focused."You didn't sleep," Victor observed."Couldn't." Marcus accepted the coffee gratefully. "I kept seeing different patterns and connections. The Bradfords think they're so careful, but they're not. They're bleeding from a thousand cuts and trying to hide it with expensive suits and charity galas."Victor set down the bag of bagels and studied Marcus's additi