Marceline floats back into the living room. She moves like someone who's never had to hurry for anything. Her hand rests on her belly. She smiles at Andrew.
"Darling, this is Alessia. She's from the agency."
Andrew sets the bakery bag on the marble counter. His movements are careful. Controlled. He looks at me like I'm a stranger he's trying to place.
"Nice to meet you," he says.
I pull out my listing agreement. The paper crinkles in the silence. "Let's go over the terms."
We sit at the dining table. Andrew takes the chair across from me. Marceline settles beside him, her hand finding his automatically. I watch their fingers lace together. His wedding band catches the light. I wonder if it's new or if he's been wearing it for two years while he wore mine at the same time.
I flip through the contract pages. My voice stays level. Professional. "Standard commission structure. Six percent, split between buyer and seller agents. The property will be listed at thirty million, though given the extraordinary investment in a property registered solely in one party's name, we may see some unique buyer interest."
Andrew's jaw tightens. Just a fraction. Just enough.
Marceline doesn't notice. She's looking at the view, at the park, at the life she thinks she has.
"We'll need documentation," I continue. "Deed, title insurance, any liens or encumbrances on the property. Full financial disclosure for the co-op board package."
"I'll have my attorney send everything over," Andrew says. His voice is smooth. Easy. The same voice that told me we couldn't afford heat last winter.
I write his name on the contact line. My pen doesn't shake.
"And Mrs. Flores," I say, turning to Marceline. "I'll need your signature as well. Since you're listed as the primary resident."
She reaches for the pen. Andrew's hand moves—just slightly—like he wants to stop her. Then he catches himself.
I slide my card across the table. "I'll be in touch within forty-eight hours with comparable sales data and our marketing strategy."
Marceline takes the card. Studies it. "Torres," she says. "That's a pretty name."
"It was my grandmother's," I say. I look at the display case in the hallway. At the necklace behind the glass. "Family names matter."
I stand. Gather my portfolio. Andrew rises too, too quickly.
"I'll walk you out," he says.
Marceline waves from the sofa. "Thank you, Alessia. This is all so exciting."
I smile at her. She smiles back.
The elevator doors close behind us. Andrew jabs the button for the parking garage instead of the lobby. The car descends in silence. I watch the numbers fall. Forty. Thirty. Twenty.
"Alessia—"
"Don't," I say.
The doors open onto concrete and fluorescent lights. My car is parked near the exit. A Honda with a dent in the passenger door. I walk toward it.
Andrew follows. His footsteps echo.
"Please. Just let me explain."
I unlock my car. Pop the trunk. Set my portfolio inside.
"Alessia." His voice cracks. Desperate. Familiar. "Look at me."
I turn.
He drops to his knees on the garage floor. Right there on the cold concrete, in his cashmere sweater and his Italian shoes. His hands reach for mine.
"It's not what you think," he says. "Marceline—the marriage—it was the only way to secure Series B funding. Her father's firm wouldn't invest unless there were family ties. I had no choice. The company was going under."
I look down at him. At his face. The face I used to trace with my fingers in the dark.
"I was trying to protect you," he says. "Keep you out of it. Keep you safe. I love you. I've always loved you. You're my wife. My real wife."
His phone is in his hand. His fingers move across the screen.
My phone buzzes in my pocket.
Venmo notification. Andrew Carlson sent you $500,000.
He looks up at me. Eyes wet. Pleading.
"Take it," he says. "Please. I know I hurt you. I know I should have told you. But I'm fixing it. I'm fixing everything. The IPO is in six weeks. After that, I'll have enough to make this right. To make us right."
I look at the notification. At the number with all those zeros.
I look at him on his knees.
Something cold and clear settles in my chest.
I smile. It feels strange on my face. Like a mask I'm trying on for the first time.
"I appreciate you explaining," I say.
I get in my car. Close the door. Start the engine.
In my rearview mirror, I watch him stand. Dust off his knees. Pull out his phone.
I drive out of the garage into gray afternoon light.
---
My apartment smells like mildew and the Chinese food my neighbor microwaved three days ago. One window. Brick wall view. A mattress on the floor because I sold the bed frame last year.
I lock the door. Set my bag down. Sit on the floor with my back against the wall.
I set a timer on my phone. One hour.
Then I let myself break.
I cry for the baby I lost in a hospital bathroom between shifts. For my grandmother's necklace in someone else's house. For the three jobs and the consignment shops and the nights I ate ramen so Andrew could have his medication that was never medication at all. For eight years. For the woman I was who believed every word.
The timer goes off.
I wash my face in the sink. Cold water. No mirror.
I open my laptop at the kitchen table. Pull up the New York State corporate registry. Type in Axiom Technologies.
The filing history loads.
Date of incorporation: Eight years ago. Original registered agent: Alessia Marie Torres.
I stare at my own name on the screen.
I open a new tab. Then another. Public records. SEC filings. Investor documents.
My fingers remember the keyboard. The code. The logic.
I was an engineer before I was anything else.
I start digging.
