Chapter 9 - THE TEST
Vance recorded the time of the call and gave the number to the police.
He didn’t call his mother.
That took effort.
Maddie noticed.
“Usually you make one phone call and expect the world to move.”
“Usually I make things worse before I know enough.”
She looked at him.
It was the closest she had come to agreement.
Nora arranged secure copies of every document.
Maddie and the twins stayed with Elise.
Grant handled building security without turning the apartment into a fortress.
The police investigated the entry.
Vance’s attorneys sent preservation notices.
Then Eleanor requested a private meeting.
“No lawyers,” she said.
He forwarded the message to his attorney.
The meeting took place at her townhouse with counsel present.
Eleanor looked offended before anyone sat down.
“I raised you.”
“Yes.”
“I protected you.”
“That’s what we’re here to discuss.”
His attorney placed three certified letters on the table.
Eleanor didn’t touch them.
“Maddie was drowning. She would have pulled you under.”
“She asked me to meet my children.”
“You were finally free.”
Vance felt the old instinct rise.
Keep her calm.
Let her finish.
Don’t turn the room against you.
He had spent his childhood obeying it.
He stayed seated.
“Did you authorize the addendum?”
“I authorized a clean ending.”
“That isn’t an answer.”
“Your marriage had failed. Why should two embryos dictate the rest of your life?”
His attorney made a note.
Vance looked at his mother for a long time.
“They’re children.”
Eleanor’s face hardened.
“Now they are.”
He stood.
There was nothing left to ask her that she could answer safely for him.
Outside, his hands were shaking.
Maddie called before he reached the car.
“Theo has a fever.”
“Do you need a ride?”
“Grant’s driver is coming. I’m taking him to urgent care.”
“Can I meet you?”
A pause.
“Yes. Quietly.”
Vance arrived twenty minutes later.
Theo lay against Maddie, flushed and limp with exhaustion.
Vance crouched beside them.
“Hey, buddy.”
Theo’s eyes opened.
“Mom stays?”
“Mom stays.”
The nurse called them back.
At the desk, Maddie stopped to sign a form.
Vance waited beside her.
Then his phone lit up with a company alert.
May you like
An emergency board vote had been scheduled for nine the next morning.
Motion: remove Vance Callahan as chief executive.
