Chapter 4 - Terms of Divestment
Two days later, my mother tried a different tactic: the ambush.
I was leaving a client meeting at a café downtown when she stepped out from a boutique next door, blocking my path to my car. She wasn't wearing her sharp hostess smile today. Her face was tight, her eyes rimmed with red, though her coat was as immaculate as ever.
"We need to talk," she said, reaching for my arm.
I stepped back, out of her reach. "There's nothing to talk about, Mom."
"How can you say that?" her voice cracked, an oscar-winning performance of a grieving mother. "Your father hasn't slept in forty-eight hours. The bank is threatening to call the entire loan if we don't find a secondary guarantor by Friday. Leah is distraught. You are tearing this family apart over a misunderstanding!"
"A misunderstanding is when you forget to pass the salt, Mom. What you did to Noah was a declaration of where he stands in your hierarchy."
"He was grabbing!" she hissed, the mask slipping for a fraction of a second, revealing the old venom. "He has no discipline. I was doing you a favor. You’ve spoiled him since Mark left you, and someone needs to teach that boy boundaries."
I looked at her, and suddenly, the immense power she held over my childhood felt incredibly small. She was just an insecure woman who used cruelty to maintain control over a tiny kingdom of submissive relatives.
"You don't get to speak his name," I said. "And you will never be within fifty feet of him again."
"I am your mother!" she shouted, causing a passerby to glance over. "I gave you everything!"
"You gave me an anxiety disorder and a ledger," I replied smoothly. "And I’ve paid my debt in full. Tell Dad that Arthur Vance will be sending over the final divestment paperwork today. If he contacts me again outside of legal channels, I’ll file for a restraining order for both myself and Noah."
She gasped, her hand flying to her throat as if I had struck her. "You wouldn't dare. The public embarrassment—"
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"I don't care about your public image anymore, Mom. Protect it yourself."
I got into my car, locked the doors, and started the engine. As I pulled out of the parking space, I saw her in my rearview mirror, standing on the sidewalk, looking smaller and angrier than she ever had in my life.
