The next morning my phone blew up.
By the third day the recording was everywhere. The company chat, the client chats, all of it.
Jackson had sent it to every place he could reach.
"Director Finch, you're suspended for now. Internal audit turned up some problems with you, and your pay is being held."
I hung up, sat in my rented apartment, and stared at the ceiling.
Jackson showed up that afternoon.
I opened the door and he shoved his way in with a fruit basket in his hand.
"Clyde, I came to see your mother."
"You son of a—"
He dropped onto the couch like he owned it. "Clyde, that business with the two hundred grand, I'm letting it go."
My mother froze, staring at me with doubt in her eyes.
I froze too.
"Clyde, you... you took money from him?"
I was about to say something back.
"Ma'am, don't blame Clyde," Jackson sighed. "He only did it because he needed the money."
Guilt washed over her face. She turned to pour tea, saying as she went,
"Jackson, honestly, my Clyde is a good, simple boy. If he's ever weighed you and Serena down, please bear with him a little!"
He steadied her with a hand and fussed over her. "Ma'am, is your health all right? I know a few good doctors. I'll arrange a checkup for you sometime."
Held up by his arm, she was actually moved.
"Jackson, you're such a good person. For my Clyde to have friends like you and Serena, he's truly blessed."
I stood off to the side, watching my mother be spun in circles by Jackson, something churning inside me.
Right up until Jackson left, she never once looked me in the eye.
That night.
Serena came too.
"Sign."
I took it and looked. It was an agreement waiving my shared stake in the marital home.
"That recording, you know Jackson faked it."
"You—" She started to say something, then a dull thud came from inside the apartment.
My mother had collapsed on the floor, her face frighteningly pale.
"Ma!"
I rushed over and lifted her up.
Her lips trembled as she spoke. "Clyde... what's wrong between you and Serena..."
And with that, she passed out.
I gathered her up and ran out the door.
Serena stood in the doorway. She didn't stop me, and she didn't help.
She just stood there, watching me run off, her face as cold as if she were looking at a stranger.
