“I can explain every line of that.”
“You called me a walking bag of money, Derek. I heard you. I was standing three feet behind you in rags.”
I asked my assistant to bring Lily and her mother upstairs.
The board members turned their heads slowly toward him.
“You’re terminated,” I said. “Legal will handle the rest. Leave the building today.”
He opened his mouth, then closed it, and walked out without another word.
I asked my assistant to bring Lily and her mother upstairs.
They came in clutching each other’s hands, Lily still in her faded uniform.
“Sir?” Lily whispered. “Are you… are you okay?”
She pressed both hands to her mouth and sank into a chair.
“I’m better than I’ve been in thirty years.”
I knelt slowly to her level. “My name is the one on the building outside. And your mother’s family line traces back to Anna’s sister.”
