The first day back after the holidays, every employee in the company received a New Year bonus of $888.
Everyone except my mother.
On top of that, she got a notice from HR: a thirty percent pay cut.
My mother told me to let it go. But I was seething.
I marched straight to the CEO's office and demanded to know what the hell was going on.
Prudence Swanson hadn't even opened her mouth before her father slammed his palm on the desk.
"A crippled old hag who can barely walk in a straight line wants a bonus?" Kevin Swanson's voice filled the room. "Know your place. Don't you dare compare your mother to everyone else."
"Let me spell it out for you—if it weren't for Prue, I wouldn't have let that woman through the front door."
Prudence waved her hand, irritation plain on her face.
"Rudolph Dickerson, my father's made himself clear. What he says goes for me too."
"Go back to work."
"And those orders from Aurum Holdings and Crestworth Industries—stay on top of them."
I pressed my lips together. The silence stretched.
Then I spoke.
"Prudence. My mother and I quit."
"And I want a divorce."
——
She froze. The disbelief on her face was absolute.
I turned and walked toward the door. My steps were steady.
Behind me came Kevin's cold laugh. "Rudolph, is this your idea of a tantrum?"
"Fine. Walk out. I'd love to see how many days you last."
His voice rose, dripping with the certainty of a man who'd never been told no.
"Who do you think you are? A salesman. That's all you've ever been. Without Prue, you think you'd have that title? You think you'd have earned a single one of those commissions?"
"And your mother."
"A lame old woman. Where else is she going to find work?"
I didn't look back. I pushed through the door and let it close behind me.
The hallway was quiet. Every word he'd said replayed in my head, one after another.
It wasn't anger. It was something duller than that—a blunt, grinding ache, like someone sawing through bone with a dull blade.
"Rudolph!"
Prudence came after me. Her heels struck the floor in a sharp, uneven rhythm.
She grabbed my arm. Her grip was stronger than I expected.
"Stop right there."
"What's gotten into you? You know how my father is. He runs his mouth—you've never taken it seriously before. Why now?"
I looked at her face. Said nothing.
My silence unsettled her. Her tone softened a fraction. "Look, just go back to work. The bonus—I'll have someone send one to your mother later. Okay? Is that enough?"
I reached down and peeled her fingers off my arm, slowly, one by one.
"Don't bother."
She blinked. Her brows drew together. "Rudolph, what is this? Over a bonus? You're going to blow things up with my father over a bonus? Is it really worth it?"
"You were never like this. He's said worse, and you always just laughed it off."
"What's different about today?"
I stopped walking.
She stood two paces behind me, slightly out of breath. Confusion and impatience fought for control of her expression.
She genuinely didn't understand.
"You're right," I said, my voice even. "Before, I swallowed everything. He called me useless. Said I married above my station. Said my whole family owed him. I laughed it off every single time."
"But today."
"He went after my mother."
She had nothing to say to that.
I looked at her, and something shifted. She felt like a stranger.
All these years of marriage, I thought I knew her. But back in that office, she'd sat there and watched her father humiliate my mother without a single word of protest.
All she did was wave her hand, annoyed.
Like she was shooing away a dog.
I turned and walked away. This time, I didn't look back.
As the elevator doors slid shut, I caught one last glimpse of her through the narrowing gap—still standing in the same spot, her expression too far away to read.
