I WAS AT THE AIRPORT TO PICK UP MY FRIEND, BUT I SAW MY HUSBAND WITH SOMEONE ELSE — I HEARD THEIR PLAN TO STOLE EVERYTHING FROM ME, BUT THEY DIDN’T KNOW THAT THEY WERE THE ONES INSIDE MY TRAP
THE HIDEOUT
Cynthia is a successful CEO of Monteverde Group. Smart, strict in business, but soft-hearted when it comes to her husband Rico.

It was Friday. Cynthia was at NAIA Terminal 3. She was wearing a simple jacket, cap, and big sunglasses. She was waiting for her best friend from Japan. She wanted to surprise him so she didn’t have a driver pick her up and didn’t bring bodyguards.

While standing in the waiting area, something caught her eye.

A familiar man. He was wearing a leather jacket and was dragging a large suitcase.

Rico.

Wait, Cynthia thought. He said he was in Cebu for a business conference? Why was he here at International Departure?

He was about to approach Rico to greet him, when suddenly a woman approached his wife. A sexy woman, her arm wrapped around Rico, and kissed him on the lips.

Vanessa. Cynthia’s personal accountant. The woman he trusted with the company’s money.

Cynthia froze. She felt like ice had been poured over her.

But instead of rushing in and making a scandal, she kept quiet. Her business-minded mind was working. I need to know what was going on.

She slowly approached and hid behind a large pole near where the two were sitting.

THE DIRTY PLAN
Because they were busy laughing, Rico and Vanessa didn’t notice that Cynthia was just behind them.

Cynthia took out her phone and pressed Record.

“Babe, are you sure everything is okay?” Rico asked. “Cynthia might notice that the money is missing.”

Vanessa laughed. “Don’t worry, Babe. Your husband is a fool. He trusted me too much. I had him sign the documents yesterday. He thought it was just a routine audit, but in fact, it was a Deed of Transfer.”

“Really?” Rico said excitedly.

“Yes! I have transferred 500 Million Pesos from his accounts to our Offshore Account in the Cayman Islands. When our plane leaves for Brazil later, we will be left without a trace. We will leave him a beggar.”

“You really are great!” Rico said. “I am so sick of him. He is too bossy. It’s a good thing we got him out of the way. Tomorrow, he will wake up with no company, no wife, and no money.”

“Cheers to our new life!” Vanessa said.

Cynthia’s hand was shaking as she held the phone. The husband she loved and the employee she considered a brother… both were snakes.

She wanted to cry, but she wiped her tears away immediately.

Do you want a game? Cynthia whispered to herself. I’ll give it to you.

Suddenly Cynthia’s phone rang. The one she was waiting for had arrived.

Not her best friend from Japan.

But the “friend” she had called earlier before she went to the airport.

CLOSING THE TRAP
Cynthia stood up. She adjusted her cap. She walked towards Rico and Vanessa.

“Hi, Love! Hi, Vanessa!” Cynthia greeted enthusiastically.

Rico’s eyes widened. “C-Cynthia?! What are you doing here?!”

Vanessa quickly let go of Rico’s embrace. “Ma’am Cynthia! Ah… eh… Sir Rico and I just met here! It was just a coincidence!”

“A coincidence?” Cynthia smiled. She took off her sunglasses. “I thought you were in Cebu, Rico? And you, Vanessa, aren’t you on sick leave right now?”

“Ah… yes…” Rico was sweating profusely. “There’s an emergency meeting in… in Brazil! Yes, I’m taking Vanessa with me to do an audit!”

“Emergency meeting in Brazil with my 500 Million Pesos?” Cynthia asked bluntly.

The two were stunned.

“W-What are you saying?” Rico stammered.

Cynthia picked up her phone. She played the recording.

“Your husband is an idiot… I’ve already transferred the 500 Million Pesos… We’ll leave him a beggar…”

Vanessa turned pale. “Ma’am…”

Rico’s face suddenly changed. From fear, it became arrogant.

“Well,” Rico grinned. “It’s obvious. Let’s finish this nonsense. Yes, Cynthia. We’re leaving. And there’s nothing you can do. I already have the money. You’ve signed the transfer documents. You’ve lost.”

“Vanessa, let’s go. Leave that girl alone,” Rico’s nanny said.

They turned to go to the Immigration Gate.

“Try to step,” Cynthia said. “And you’ll see who the real fool is.”

Rico didn’t listen. He walked on.

But six men in uniform blocked them. NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) agents.

And behind the agents, the “friend” that Cynthia was waiting for came out—Attorney Guzman, her personal lawyer.

THE LAST LAUGH
“Rico Monteverde and Vanessa Go,” said the NBI Agent. “We’re arresting you for Qualified Theft and Large Scale Estafa.”

“What arrest?!” Rico shouted. “You have no evidence! Besides, it’s my money! Cynthia signed the transfer!”

Attorney Guzman came over and laughed.

“Rico, Rico, Rico,” the lawyer shook his head. “Did you really think Cynthia would sign a document without reading it?”

Cynthia looked at Vanessa.

“Vanessa, when you handed me the papers yesterday… I noticed your hand was shaking. So when you left to get coffee, I changed the contents of the folder.”

Vanessa’s eyes widened. “W-What?!”

“What I signed,” Cynthia explained, “It was just old memos. The document you’re holding now that you thought was a Transfer of Assets? That’s fake. Scrap paper.”

“And the bank transfer?” Rico asked. “I saw it in the system! The money was reduced!”

“Ah, is that it?” Cynthia smiled. “I ordered the IT Department to create a dummy interface for you, Vanessa. You can see on the screen that the money was transferred, but in the real bank? Not a single penny moved.”

“In fact,” added Attorney Guzman. “Because of this attempt of yours, we have frozen all your personal accounts. Even your credit cards have been declined. You have nothing to buy, not even water.”

Vanessa fell to the floor. “No… this is not possible…”

Rico, on the other hand, was struggling. “Cynthia! I am your wife! You can’t put me in jail! It was just a joke! I was just testing how smart you are!”

Cynthia approached Rico. She looked him in the eye—cold and merciless.

“You tested me, Rico. And you proved that I am smart.”

Cynthia took her ring and dropped it into Rico’s jacket pocket.

“Keep the ring. That is the only wealth you will have left. Use it to pay your lawyer inside the jail.”

“Take them,” the NBI Agent ordered.

Rico and Vanessa were handcuffed in front of a crowd at the airport. They were dragged away in shame, while Cynthia remained standing—calm, firm, and victorious.

Cynthia turned to face Attorney Guzman.

“Come on, Attorney,” Cynthia said. “I’m hungry. Treat me to a coffee.”

Cynthia left the airport alone, but free. She had proven that in the game of life and business, a woman who knows her worth cannot be underestimated.

THE END