The Two Cents War Chapter 2

Jessica was detained for five days and fined five hundred dollars.

The CFPB called the next day, confirming a special investigation team had been formed.

They would thoroughly investigate my report regarding the "embezzlement of small customer assets."

The bank's headquarters reacted quickly too. Mr. King was suspended.

A Vice President named Chen contacted me personally. His attitude was impeccable, apologizing on behalf of the bank and promising strict disciplinary action and a satisfactory explanation.

I hung up, not believing a word.

Institutions like this always try to bury the problem first.

Sure enough, that night, my phone wouldn't stop ringing.

At first, it was unknown numbers, screaming filth the moment I picked up.

I set my phone to block unknown callers.

Then came Jessica's friends and family.

They somehow got my number and found all my social media accounts.

Someone claiming to be Jessica's cousin sent me hundreds of voice messages.

"How can your heart be so black? You got our Jessica arrested, isn't that enough?"

"For two cents, you're ruining a young girl's future. Are you even human?"

"Leave people a way out. Do you have to destroy her completely?"

And then there was Jessica's boyfriend, even more direct.

"Bitch, drop the case or I'll find people to kill you!"

He sent a selfie holding a mop handle, backgrounded by the entrance to my apartment complex.

I didn't reply. I just screenshotted everything.

Mr. King's text came through too.

"Ms. Foster, better to untie the knot than tighten it. Jessica has been fired, you've vented your anger. The bank is willing to compensate you fifty thousand dollars. Let's end this here, what do you say?"

"If you keep making trouble, it won't be good for either of us. You're young, the road ahead is long. You understand."

Threats between the lines.

I screenshotted this message too.

They moved fast.

New posts appeared on social media. The titles were variations on a theme.

"Exposing the cold-blooded auditor who drove a teller to suicide over two cents."

"Breaking: The teller has had a mental breakdown and committed suicide!"

"The ordinary woman who pushed someone to the brink over pennies."

The posts were detailed, claiming Jessica lost her job because of my complaint and, under my continued pressure, slashed her wrists. She was supposedly in critical condition.

Below was a pixelated photo of someone with purple hair lying in a hospital bed with bandaged wrists.

The comments section exploded.

"Holy shit, real or fake? Suicide over two cents? Is this woman a demon?"

"Omg! This is terrifying!"

"My friend works at that hospital, heard she lost a lot of blood. It's critical."

"Auditors think they're god? Gross! Disgusting power trip!"

My name, company, even my college photos were dug up.

My phone blew up. My company's reception line blew up.

I watched the venomous words pop up on my screen, then calmly turned off my phone.

They thought this would scare me off?

I opened my laptop and posted on an anonymous forum on the dark web.

Subject: "Offering $10,000 bounty for information on backdoors or artificial financial black holes in [Bank Name]'s software system."

It was the fastest way I could think of to find where the money went.