“Don’t touch me! Get your hands off me!” she yelled, her hair falling everywhere and her suit getting messy. “Do you know who I am? I am Barbara Pembroke! I give money to this hospital! I will get you fired!”
“You have no money left, Mother,” I said softly from my bed.
My voice was not loud, but she stopped screaming right away. Barbara turned to look at me with angry eyes, but she could do nothing to me anymore.
Reginald looked back at me while the guard pulled him toward the door. Tears were falling down his face as he tried one last time to make me feel bad.
“Florence, please!” Reginald cried out. “We are your family! Your mother and father! You can’t do this to us! Think of your brother Raymond!”
I looked down at Kirk. He was sleeping happily, completely safe from his mean grandparents. I felt Alistair standing right beside me, keeping us safe.
I looked up into my father’s crying face. I felt no sorrow or regret at all.
“You said you would never hold my baby,” I told him in a clear, strong voice. “I am just making sure you keep that promise. Get out.”
Reginald let out a sad cry and dropped his head. The guards dragged my parents out the door and down the hallway. Barbara’s loud screaming and Reginald’s crying got quieter and quieter as they were taken down the elevator, losing all their money, their status, and their daughter.
After they were gone, my phone on the table started buzzing loudly.
I picked it up and saw a big news story on the screen:
“NEWS: CEO of Pembroke Development Arrested by FBI for Stealing Millions.”
Below the words was a video. It showed the big Pembroke business building downtown. Police officers were everywhere in the lobby. And coming out the front door in handcuffs was my brother, Raymond.
He was wearing his nice suit, but his face looked white with fear. The favorite son was being shown on news TV while all his workers watched him get taken away to jail.
I watched the video for a moment, seeing the police car doors shut behind my brother.
Alistair sat down on the edge of my bed. He did not look at the phone or care about the news. He only looked at me and our baby.
He put his big, warm hand over mine, covering the phone screen.
“It is all over now,” Alistair said gently.
“Yes,” I said, taking a deep breath. “It really is.”
All the bad noise from my parents, the news, and years of them being mean to me completely went away. We sat quietly together, the three of us safe and happy. The fight was over, but as I rested my head on Alistair’s shoulder, smelling his nice scent, I knew this was just the beginning of our new, great life together.
PART 5: THE ARCHITECT OF ASHES
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