Chapter 2 - THE DESPERATION AT THE DOOR
The doorbell didn't just ring,
it screamed.
It was a frantic,
rhythmic pounding that mirrored the chaotic state of Jake’s crumbling world.
I stood in the kitchen,
pouring myself a glass of vintage wine that we had saved for a special occasion.
I suppose "The Death of a Marriage" qualified as a special occasion.
I watched the security monitor mounted on the wall.
Jake was there,
his face flushed a deep,
unhealthy purple,
his expensive silk tie loosened and hanging like a noose around his neck.
He wasn't wearing his jacket.
He had probably left it in the lobby,
or perhaps he had dropped it while running to find me.
I didn't answer.
I sipped the wine,
feeling the cool liquid slide down my throat,
while he hammered on the oak wood.
"Emma!"
he roared,
his voice cracking under the weight of his own panic.
"Emma,
open this door right now!"
"I know you're in there!"
I set the glass down on the marble counter,
the sound a sharp click in the silent house.
I walked to the intercom and pressed the button.
"You're making a scene,
Jake,"
I said,
my voice devoid of any emotion.
"The neighbors are going to call the police."
He froze,
staring directly into the camera lens with eyes that were wild and bloodshot.
"The police?"
he choked out.
"Emma,
you pulled the funding!"
"The bank just called me."
"The acquisition of the tech firm in London is dead."
"The payroll for five thousand employees is frozen."
"What have you done?"
I leaned against the wall,
crossing my arms over my chest.
"I simply took what belongs to me,
Jake."
"Eighty-three percent of the company was funded by my father’s estate."
"You were just the face I allowed to represent it."
"But I didn't think the face needed a mask for its infidelity."
He stumbled back,
his hand going to his mouth.
"It was for the company,
Emma!"
"It was a merger of families!"
"Amanda has connections we needed!"
I laughed,
a short,
bitter sound that echoed through the foyer.
"You're still lying,"
"even when the ground is disappearing beneath your feet."
"You kissed her with the passion of a man who has forgotten his wife's name."
"You gave her a diamond that was likely purchased with our joint account."
"Which,
by the way,"
"I’ve also frozen."
The silence from his end was absolute for five long seconds.
Then,
he began to sob.
Not the sobbing of a man who is sorry for hurting someone he loves.
But the sobbing of a man who has just realized he is poor.
"Please,"
he whispered,
pressing his forehead against the door.
"We can talk about this."
"Don't destroy fourteen years for one mistake."
"It wasn't a mistake,
Jake."
"It was a lifestyle choice."
"And now,"
"I'm making a choice of my own."
I turned off the intercom and walked upstairs.
The doorbell rang once more,
a long,
pathetic whine,
and then it stopped.
The silence of the house returned,
heavy and cold.
I went to the master bedroom,
opened my suitcase,
and began to pack.
I didn't need much.
I had five hundred and fifty-eight million dollars.
May you like
I could buy the world.
And I intended to start with a world that didn't include him.
