I stood up from the boardroom table and buttoned my suit jacket. Marcus picked up the signed foreclosure documents and placed them inside his briefcase.
Chloe: David, don't walk out that door! I'm your wife!
David: Not anymore. My process server will meet you outside with the rest of the restraining order papers.
Victoria: You monster! You planned this whole thing!
David: I didn't plan anything, Victoria. You brought this on yourselves the second you put your hands on my child and assumed I was too weak to fight back.
I turned and walked toward the heavy glass doors of the boardroom. Chloe ran after me, grabbing my sleeve with tears streaming down her face.
Chloe: David, please! Give me one more chance! I'll cut my parents off completely! I'll never talk to them again!
David: You should have cut them off last night when they hurt our baby. Let go of my arm, Chloe.
Chloe: What am I supposed to do now?! I don't have a job! I don't have anywhere to go!
David: You can get a job at an auto shop. I hear they're hiring down on Fifth Street.
I pulled my arm away from her grip and stepped out into the hallway. The security guards immediately stepped between Chloe and me, holding her back as she screamed my name through her sobs.
Chloe: David! Please! Don't leave me with nothing!
I walked down the quiet hallway toward the private elevator, my boots clicking softly against the marble floor. The heavy doors slid shut, cutting off the sound of her crying completely as the elevator began its smooth descent to the main lobby.
When I stepped out onto the granite plaza outside, the cool morning air hit my face. My truck was parked right out front, and in the backseat, my sister was waiting with Lily, who was happily eating a chocolate donut.
Sister: How did it go inside?
David: It's completely finished. The estate is seized, the loan is dead, and the custody papers are served.
Sister: Did Chloe say anything?
David: She tried to apologize. But it was too late.
I climbed into the driver's seat and looked back at Lily through the rearview mirror. She looked up at me with her big brown eyes, smiling brightly with chocolate smeared across her cheeks.
Lily: Daddy! Look! Auntie bought me a donut!
David: I see that, sweetie. Are you ready to go home?
Lily: Yay! Home!
I started the engine and pulled out into the morning traffic, leaving the towering Sterling building and its ruined family legacy far behind us in the distance.