Part 7

The night dragged on,

it was a slow,

painful crawl of seconds and minutes,

Daniel sat in the chair,

he was staring at his phone,

he was refreshing his email,

he was checking his bank apps,

he was waiting for a miracle,

he was waiting for a fix,

he was waiting for a lifeline,

he didn't know that I had cut the line,

he didn't know that I had burned the bridge,

he didn't know that he was sinking,

Marissa was sleeping in the corner chair,

she looked small,

she looked fragile,

she looked like a child,

a child who had stolen a toy and didn't know how to give it back,

a child who was about to be punished,

I sat by the bed,

I watched Lily's vitals,

I watched the monitor,

the rhythmic beeping was my only friend,

it was the only honest thing in this room,

it was the only truth,

the hours passed,

the city lights outside the window flickered,

the rain continued to fall,

it was cleansing,

it was washing away the filth,

it was preparing the ground for the new beginning,

I pulled out my phone,

I sent a single text to the board of the Whitmore Group,

'The ledger is attached,'

'I suggest you open it,'

'before the market opens,'

'before the chaos begins,'

'before the truth destroys you all,'

I hit send,

I felt the weight of it,

I felt the power of it,

I felt the inevitability,

there was no turning back,

the die was cast,

the Rubicon was crossed,

the bridge was ash,

I leaned back in the chair,

I closed my eyes,

I let a small,

private smile touch my lips,

Daniel looked over at me,

he was suspicious,

he was alert,

"What are you doing?"

he asked,

his voice raspy,

"I'm resting,"

I said,

"I'm praying,"

"for what?"

he asked,

"For forgiveness,"

I said,

"for all of us,"

he turned away,

he looked back at his screen,

he didn't see the incoming notification,

he didn't see the email subject line,

he didn't see the doom arriving in his inbox,

he was focused on his greed,

he was focused on his ego,

he was focused on his survival,

he was blind,

he was deaf,

he was dumb,

and he was about to be broke,

I was the architect of his demise,

I was the hand of fate,

I was the end of the line,

I opened my eyes,

I watched him,

I waited for the moment,

I waited for the realization,

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I waited for the scream,

I waited for the end.