Chương 6
My grandfather took calls in the family lounge. Through the glass, I watched executives come and go. He had changed into an ordinary dark suit, but people still approached him as if the air around him belonged to the company.
Derek did not ask about Emma.
At five thirteen, however, I received a message from the woman.
I did not know the babies were sick.
I read it and put the phone down.
Another appeared.
He told me they were premature but stable. He said you’d already decided to divorce him.
Then:
I want my things from the apartment.
The request was so selfish that it felt honest.
I typed, What things?
I deleted it.
Naomi had told me not to engage. I forwarded the messages to her.
An hour later, Derek finally asked about the babies.
How are they?
I stared at the words until they blurred.
Noah had gained twelve grams. Emma had a fever. Their father had waited almost twenty-four hours to ask.
I did not answer him either.
Northbridge Medical suspended Derek on Thursday morning.
My grandfather did not tell me. I learned from Derek, who called from an unfamiliar number after I stopped answering his.
“You ruined my career.”
I was in the pumping room, listening to another mother argue with an insurance company through the thin wall.
“I haven’t spoken to your employer.”
“Your grandfather froze the Riverside negotiations.”
“That is not the same as suspending you.”
“They opened a compliance review.”
“Why?”
Silence.
“Derek?”
“You know why.”
“I don’t.”
“You made this personal.”
“You brought your personal life into the hospital where your company was negotiating a contract.”
“That shouldn’t affect my job.”
“Then why did it?”
He breathed heavily into the phone.
The other mother next door said, for the third time, “No, I am not asking whether it’s covered in theory. I am asking whether you denied this specific claim.”
Derek lowered his voice.
“I may have used the dinner invitation.”
“For what?”
“To get upstairs.”
“How?”
“I told security I had a meeting with a family member after the event.”
“You did.”
“You know what I mean.”
“Did you mention the Riverside contract?”
He did not answer.
“What did you do, Derek?”
“I didn’t do anything illegal.”
“That is not an answer.”
“I told my team I had a relationship that could help us understand the client.”
The pump continued its mechanical pull. I watched milk strike the inside of the bottle in tiny drops.
“What relationship?”
“My marriage.”
“You told Northbridge that I could help you get the contract.”
“I said my family had connections in health care.”
“You told me your work had nothing to do with us.”
“I was trying to keep my job.”
“By selling access you didn’t have?”
“You had it. You just hid it.”
There was the shape of his defense. He had not lied, in his version. I had withheld the truth, which forced him to improvise around it.
“Did you know before last night?” he asked.
“Know what?”
“That your grandfather was considering Northbridge.”
“He considers dozens of vendors.”
“Did you ever talk about me?”
“No.”
“Not once?”
“You told me not to interfere with your work.”
“I didn’t know you could interfere.”
The sentence stayed between us.
He heard it too.
“That came out wrong.”
“No. It came out accurately.”
“Harper, I was angry yesterday. I said things.”
“You said our children were my problem.”
“I was overwhelmed.”
“You transferred our money Tuesday.”
“I had debts.”
“What debts?”
He exhaled.
“Nothing you need to worry about.”
“My money is gone. I am worried.”
“It’s safe.”
“Where?”
“I’ll explain Friday.”
“The court hearing is Friday.”
“I know.”
Of course he knew. His lawyer had told him.
“Bring the money back before then.”
“I can’t.”
The pumping machine clicked off. The sudden quiet made his breathing louder.
“Why not?”
He hung up.
Naomi obtained the transfer records that afternoon. The eighty-six thousand dollars had gone into an account held by a limited liability company registered three months earlier. The company’s mailing address belonged to a condominium development across town.
The woman’s condominium.
Naomi did not celebrate the discovery. She drew a box around the address and asked whether Derek had ever discussed real estate investments.
“No.”
“Gambling?”
“No.”
“Debt?”
“No.”
“Drugs?”
“Not that I know of.”
“Affairs beyond this one?”
“I didn’t know about this one until Wednesday.”
Naomi sat back.
“Fair.”
The condominium itself was under contract. The escrow deposit had been paid Tuesday morning from the new company account.
He had used our savings to buy a home for the woman carrying his child.
The amount was not enough to complete the purchase. There was a financing contingency and a closing date six weeks away. Naomi requested an emergency order preserving the funds. The title company agreed not to disburse anything until the court reviewed the dispute.
For the first time, something Derek had done began to move backward.
Not disappear. Not repair itself.
Backward.
That evening, Emma’s blood pressure dropped.
The team moved quickly. More medication. More tests. A discussion about whether to replace her central line. I stood at the edge of the bay in a wheelchair, unable to touch her while gloved hands worked through the incubator openings.
My grandfather stood behind me.
“Go home,” I said.
“No.”
“You have a board meeting.”
“I have people for that.”
“You always have people for everything.”
He heard the accusation.
After the doctors stabilized Emma, he wheeled me to the family lounge. Rain had started against the windows, blurring the city lights. Someone had left half a sandwich in the refrigerator with a note that said DO NOT THROW AWAY, as if the sandwich were a legal matter.
My grandfather poured coffee from a machine and grimaced after tasting it.
“This is terrible.”
“You own the coffee too.”
“I’m beginning to understand how revolutions start.”
May you like
I looked out at the wet glass.
“You knew there was something wrong with Derek.”
