Chapter 3
On my last day before flying out, the company held a dinner on the top floor, officially a sendoff for my training but really a celebration of the smooth handover.
Henry took the stage in the suit I had chosen, delivering the speech.
"These three years of growth couldn't have happened without the team's hard work. And special thanks to the new blood, who joined us and breathed fresh life into the project."
He looked down at Sophia in the audience and raised his glass. Every eye in the room turned to her at once.
Sophia dipped her head, color rising in her cheeks.
From start to finish, Henry never once said my name. I sat in the corner, quietly cutting into my steak.
"Ms. Lane, let me toast you." Sophia came over with her glass and tilted it just so, making sure the bracelet on her wrist caught the light.
He had bought it at auction the week before, telling me it was a gift for a client.
"Hope everything goes well over there. I'll take good care of the project." She held out the glass and I didn't take it.
Henry had come over at some point, stopping one seat away. "Ms. Lane is flying out soon. Don't push the drinks on her tonight." He played it off as looking out for me, but his eyes were on Sophia the whole time.
I lifted my water glass and tapped it against hers. "Here's to your bright futures."
When the dinner ended, heavy rain was coming down outside.
Henry brought the Maybach around, popped a black umbrella, and turned to Sophia.
"Rain's too heavy, not safe out there alone. I'll drop you on my way." He slipped off his suit jacket and laid it across her shoulders.
"Thank you, Mr. Carter."
Sophia hesitated and looked back at me. "Ms. Lane, is that all right with you? Want to come along?"
"No need. I'll grab a cab."
The window rolled up and the Maybach raced off into the night.
I watched the tail lights disappear into the dark as my phone buzzed in my hand.
A message had come in from Atlas Enterprises' office.
[Ms. Lane, the private jet is ready, and the regional president's office in Saldovia now has your name on it. Looking forward to your arrival.]
I typed back "See you tomorrow" and hailed a cab.
Back at the loft, I pulled out the suitcase I had already packed.
I opened the bottom drawer of the vanity. Inside was a plain band ring.
He had bought it from a street vendor on the day we signed our marriage license, promising me a proper diamond once the company went public.
I slipped the ring off and locked it in the drawer with every other gift he had ever given me. The key went into the toilet and got flushed away.
At two in the morning, Henry pushed the door open and walked in with a takeout box in his hand.
"Still awake? I grabbed your favorite soup on the way back. It's still hot."
He set the box on the coffee table and reached to pull me into a hug.
I twisted sideways and slipped past him. "I'm not hungry."
"Mad I didn't drive you home tonight? Sophia lives out of the way and the rain was bad. I had a duty as her boss."
"I know."
I stared at the bag, broth bleeding through and pooling at the bottom. "My flight's tomorrow morning. Can you drive me?"
He didn't answer right away, just tapped his fingers twice against his knee. "Got a last-minute meeting at eight I can't miss. Have the driver take you."
"Don't bother." I stood and rolled the suitcase toward the guest room.
"Charlotte." He called out behind me.
"When you come back..."
I didn't turn and kept walking.
*****
At six in the morning, the whole city was still wrapped in mist.
I wheeled my suitcase out of the loft without a backward glance.
On the way to the airport, my phone lit up with a message from Henry.
Henry: [Let me know when you land.]
I didn't reply right away. Out of habit, I swiped through my social feed.
Sophia had posted something five minutes earlier.
The photo showed a hand with an IV in it, white hospital walls in the background.
The caption was a single line. [Came down with a fever out of nowhere. Glad I'm not alone.]
Half a watch strap peeked out at the edge of the photo.
I recognized that watch.
I'd had it made last year for Henry, the left of a matching pair.
I switched off the screen, flipped the phone over, and laid it face down on my knee.
When I reached the airport departure hall, I headed for the entrance tucked in the corner, where a young man in a suit was already waiting.
When he saw me, he inclined his head in greeting. "Ms. Lane, the private jet is ready. You can board whenever you like."
I handed him my suitcase.
Before stepping into the VIP entrance, I paused in front of a trash can.
I took out the SIM card I had used for the past five years.
I pinched the edge between my nails and snapped it in two.
The two halves fell into the trash without a sound.
The private jet wasn't large, but every detail had been carefully arranged.
A flight attendant brought over a hot oat latte, the temperature just right.
I sank into the seat and opened my laptop.
On the desktop sat a draft email I'd saved months ago.
It was addressed to Henry's personal email, with three attachments below.
The first was a refund receipt for a 170 thousand dollar check. The money had already been wired back to the company account.
The second was a cross-border divorce agreement, my signature on the last page dated a month earlier.
The third was a letter revoking the licensing on the Starlight Initiative code.
I had read through every clause more times than I could count.
The chime sounded as the cabin doors closed.
A flight attendant came over and bent down beside me. "Ms. Lane, please fasten your seatbelt."
I nodded.
The plane began to taxi, and the terminal outside the window slowly drifted backward.
The engines roared louder, and the seat pressed me back.
The plane lurched up under me.
Everything on the ground shrank fast. It would all slowly fade from view.
When the clouds broke open, the sunlight poured in so sharp it made me squint.
I moved the cursor over to the send button.
I held it there for two seconds.
Then I clicked. A small line of text popped up on the screen.
[Message sent.]
I closed the laptop, leaned back into the seat, and shut my eyes.
And then, at 30,000 feet, I sank into the first peaceful sleep I'd had in three years.