of her, but they were just gathering dust, unsold. A small, formidable stack of white envelopes sat on her cluttered worktable, each one a final n

e world for a moment. Her thumb froze on the screen. A news notification flashed at t

e he

ed to light up the world around him. He stood in front of a gleaming new building, a crowd of reporters and adm

l bed, his skin a pale, sickly yellow. And she was the one

d the notification away and pulled up his contact information. Her finger hovered over the call button.

vy thing, and it was crushing h

g once, twice

el

woman, her tone smooth and p

" Sarah asked, her own voice so

purred. Jessica. Sarah recognized the

Sarah

filled with an unspoken

rk is very busy. He's in the middle of a very import

ds out. "It's just... I really need

ing laugh trickled

always did have a knack for timing, didn't you, Sarah? S

at went dry.

We've moved on. I don't know what kind of g

n Sarah heard a muffled voice in

Jessica said, her voice d

," Mark's voice de

then his voice, cold a

ar

a wave of painful re

do you

no flicker of their s

, the humiliation burning her cheeks. "

Sick of being a starving artist? Realized you mad

I'm really sick. I need a

u thought, 'Who has money? Oh, I know. The guy I abandoned when

The words tore out of

me a note saying you couldn't handle it. So don't you dare try to rewrite

he would never know. He truly believed it. He believed the lie she had constructed, the lie Jessica ha

. The injustice of

re, unadulterated disgust. "I'll send you something. For old times' sake. Then you wi

or an answer. Th

as louder than his accusations. She slowly lowered the phone, her hand trembling. S

listed her as an anonymous donor. She remembered the terror and the fierce, protective love that had driven her to do

ion chimed

ion blurry. It was a ban

Mark J

t: $5

old times' sake. Do

ndred d

history. It was a slap in the face, a clear message that she was nothing

pain was sharp and visceral, a physical manifestation of her shattered heart. The mone

r best friend, Emily Chen, had called, her voice tight with worry, but Sarah h

sed to go when they were both broke and dreaming of the future. She ordere

n she s

at a table near the window, the city lights glowing behind them. He reached across the table and took her hand, his thumb stro

she had sacrificed everything for him to hav

canned the room, a predator' s casual survey, and they locked onto Sarah. A slow, triumphant smile spread acr

k, thunderous expression. He stood up, Jessica clinging to his arm

red against her rib

s now?" Mark's voice

her face pale. "I just.

uld stop them, a desperate appeal t

A long time ago. What are you doing here, Sara

shaking with a fury born of pain. "You

. His face hardened, twisti

want a piece of it. You think you can show up and play the victim and I'll just write you a check.

who had saved his life, but as a parasite trying to latch onto his fortune. And

-