Chapter 8
Chapter 8: The Final Word
We met him at a public coffee shop.
He looked older.
Smaller.
The arrogance that once filled his eyes had been replaced by a pathetic, desperate hunger.
He reached across the table.
"Claire, look how you've grown."
She did not flinch.
She did not pull her hands away.
She simply looked at him with absolute, unbreakable calm.
"I am giving you five minutes," she said.
He launched into a rehearsed speech.
Apologies.
Excuses.
And finally, the request for a "small loan" to get back on his feet.
Claire let him finish.
When he fell silent, she stood up.
"You took my mother," she said. "You tried to take my future. You will not take a single penny of this money."
"I am your blood!" he hissed.
"No," Claire said softly. She looked at me. "I already have my family."
May you like
She walked out.
He never bothered us again.
