Chapter 18 - Stripped Bare
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By January, the legal storm had settled into a cold, bleak reality for the remaining members of the Fairchild family.
Victoria Fairchild had moved into a small, one-bedroom rental apartment on the outskirts of the city, working as an entry-level retail assistant to pay her rent after her trust accounts were completely liquidated.
Brendan had been released on bond pending his criminal trial, living in a dark studio apartment with no car, no job, and an ankle monitor tracking his movements.
His legal defense team had abandoned him after his remaining retainers bounced.
One afternoon, sitting at a wobbly formica table in his apartment, Brendan opened his mail.
Every letter was a final notice, a court summons, or a bill for legal expenses.
At the bottom of the stack lay a single plain white envelope with no return address.
Inside was a single printed sheet of paper—a copy of the original medical request Nora had submitted for Chloe's four-thousand-five-hundred-dollar heart medication, stamped in thick red ink:
APPROVED IN FULL — FUNDED BY VANCE PEDIATRIC FOUNDATION.
Underneath the stamp, written in neat blue ink, was a single handwritten note from Nora:
May you like
The bill has been taken care of. Stop bothering us.
Brendan clutched the paper to his chest, sinking to his knees on the bare floor, his violent sobs echoing through the empty room.
