Kendal's Volvo tore down the street, putting half a block between her and the school gates. Suddenly, her foot slammed down on the brake pedal. The tires screeched against the asphalt as the heavy SUV lurched to a violent halt beside a corner coffee shop.
She threw the car into park. Her chest was heaving. She turned to Freddie, told him to lock the doors and not move, and stepped out of the vehicle.
She walked back down the sidewalk, her heels striking the pavement with sharp, angry cracks.
Gus had just opened the rear door of the Maybach for Buddy. He heard the footsteps and turned around.
Kendal stopped two feet in front of him. Her eyes were blazing with a cold, furious fire. She didn't offer a greeting.
She pointed a finger at Gus and ordered him, in a voice that shook with suppressed rage, to deliver a message to his boss.
Gus lowered his head respectfully, his hands clasped in front of him.
Kendal spoke slowly, enunciating every single syllable. She told Gus to tell that psychopath to sign the divorce papers immediately and to stop stalking her.
The word "divorce" made Gus flinch. He looked up, his eyes pleading, asking her to reconsider, to think about the past.
Kendal let out a harsh, bitter laugh. She asked Gus if the betrayal of her family and the plot that killed her baby eight years ago wasn't enough for them.
The words "killed her baby" ripped from her throat. Her eyes flooded with red. Her body began to tremble violently as the somatic memory of the trauma hit her nervous system. She pressed her thumb so hard into her knuckle that the skin threatened to tear.
Inside the Maybach, the window was rolled halfway down. Buddy sat frozen in his leather seat. He heard the words clearly. His small brain spun in confusion. His father had told him he was adopted. Who was the dead baby?
Gus shrank back, physically withered by the sheer force of her grief and anger. He looked at the ground, unable to meet her eyes.
Kendal took a deep, shuddering breath, forcing the panic attack back down her throat. She raised her left hand, shoving the diamond engagement ring directly into Gus's line of sight.
She stated with brutal, crushing calm that she had a new family now. She said her fiancé was a good man.
She pointed down the street toward the parked Volvo. She screamed that the boy in the car was all the family she needed now, that she was happy, and she did not need any of them ruining her life again.
Gus stared at the ring. The finality in her voice left no room for hope. He nodded slowly, heavily, and promised to deliver the message.
Kendal dropped her hand. She turned around and walked away, her spine rigid, refusing to look back.
Gus watched her go. He let out a long, ragged breath and climbed into the driver's seat of the Maybach.
The air inside the car was suffocating. Buddy sat in the back, staring blankly at the back of Gus's headrest.
Gus pulled a Bluetooth earpiece from the center console and placed it in his ear. His hands were shaking as he dialed Elmore's private secure line.
The phone rang three times. Elmore answered. The faint sound of classical string music and the low murmur of a high-society crowd filtered through the line.
Gus swallowed the lump in his throat. He repeated Kendal's exact words. He said "psychopath," he said "divorce papers," and he said "new family."
The line went dead silent. The background music seemed to fade. The only sound was Elmore's breathing, which grew slower and heavier with every passing second.
Gus gripped the steering wheel, his palms sweating against the leather.
Five seconds later, a sharp, explosive sound cracked through the earpiece. It was the distinct sound of thick crystal shattering under immense pressure.
Elmore hung up the phone without saying a single word.
Gus pulled the earpiece out, his heart pounding against his ribs. He knew the silence meant the world was about to burn.
