Chapter 4 - The Clean Break
Dawn broke over the hospital parking lot in shades of dull gray. Leo had finally responded to intravenous antipyretics, his fever breaking around four in the morning into a cool, steady sweat. He slept soundly now against Amy's chest, breathing easily for the first time in eighteen hours.
When Mark drove them home, the front door was unlocked. The dining room was still littered with half-empty glasses, crumpled napkins, and half-eaten shrimp platters. On the sideboard sat Victoria’s diamond brooch—a deliberate marker left behind to guarantee a return visit.
Mark walked straight to the table, gathered the leftover gifts, the untouched custom cake, and Victoria’s expensive brooch. He packed the jewelry into a padded envelope, addressed it to his mother’s high-rise apartment downtown, and left it on the porch for the morning courier.
"What will you tell your father?" Amy asked softly from the doorway, her voice hoarse.
"My father passed ten years ago thinking Victoria's approval was the only currency that mattered," Mark answered, methodically stripping the linens off the long mahogany table. "I'm not spending my life paying the same debt."
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His phone buzzed on the counter. A text message lit the screen from Victoria: Your behavior was inexcusable. You will apologize to the board members who were present, or you will find your standing within the family foundation permanently revoked.
Mark didn't hesitate. He held down the screen, tapped block, and tossed the phone into a bowl on the kitchen island.
