my laughter. He wasn't

" he asked, his friendl

ing to buy my forgiveness with

ah knew exactly what I meant. A flicker of fear crossed

shifted tactics. He dropped his arm from Sarah's shoulders a

enough for them all to hear. "If Liam is going to be like this,

was trying to do something nice for everyone, but clearly,

tantly, I became the villain who had c

o the group, his voice lace

ad slowly. "I got the new iPhone for Sarah, those designer headphones for Kevin...

roup's self-interest. He wasn't just cancelling a trip; he was taking awa

he group's confused expressions morphed int

pped. "He was going to get us all

ed in. "Just because you're having a bad day, you hav

atting him on the back. "Don't worry about it, Mik

It was disgusting, but also grimly satisfying. I was seeing them all

rd. It was the Centurion Card from American Express, the famous "Black Card." My father had one, and I was the sole supplementary holder on his account. The car

f the account was the security protocol. Three incorrect PIN attempts on any card would not just lock that card

he had. He always just swiped it and signed his name with a flourish,

the look of a man who believed he had won. He had successfully isolated me and painted me as the b

ntrol. He thought he had my mone

m. He was a fly, buzzing happily, completely unaware of the spiderweb wai