A rough, raspy voice came through the phone. "As long as the money's good, I don't care who shows up. I'll smash that wall wide open for you!"
After hanging up, Tom looked completely satisfied. "Now, that's what I call professional!"
Barbara nodded approvingly and glanced at me sideways. "Gabrielle, you're finally making yourself useful."
Rex arrived quickly. He brought four burly guys in tank tops, carrying sledgehammers and jackhammers.
He had a cigarette dangling from his mouth as he squinted at the load-bearing wall. He reached out and knocked on it, producing a dull echo.
He said, "This wall? It's a shear wall, packed with rebar, a real tough one."
He blew a smoke ring and flicked his ash directly onto the floor. "That's going to cost extra."
Tom's mind was already filled with images of a panoramic floor-to-ceiling window, so he waved his hand grandly.
"Done! As long as you can tear it down, money's no problem! I want it open! I want it to be impressive!"
I seized the moment to hand Rex a pack of premium cigarettes and lit one for him.
Rex greedily accepted the cigarette and laughed. "Mrs. Williams sure knows how things work. Alright, boys! Get to work!"
The jackhammer's piercing roar instantly filled the entire room. Then came the heavy thuds of the 80-pound sledgehammer smashing into the wall.
It felt like the entire building was trembling. The crystal chandelier above our heads even swayed violently, as if it might fall at any moment.
Less than ten minutes later, urgent pounding came from the front door.
"Open up! Open the door right now! Are you trying to tear down the whole building? My kid is crying from the noise!"
The downstairs neighbors had come up.
Tom frowned and slammed his teacup down on the table. "Damn it! A bunch of broke losers with nothing better to do."
He grabbed a hammer and stormed toward the door aggressively. As soon as the door opened, he saw George Miller from downstairs standing there with a flushed face.
George screamed, "What the hell are you doing in there? Why is it so loud? My chandelier shook loose! Are you messing with a load-bearing wall?"
He was a retired engineer, and he immediately spotted the exposed rebar inside.
His face went ghostly pale. "You're insane! You've lost your mind! That's a load-bearing wall! Stop right now!"
Tom pointed the hammer at George's nose while cursing, "I'm renovating my own place, and it's none of your damn business! I dropped hundreds of thousands on this apartment, and I'll remodel it however I want! Keep running your mouth, and I'll bash your head in!"
Barbara rushed over to back him up, swinging a broom at George. "Get lost! Get out of here, you fool! You're just jealous that we're putting in big windows; you can't stand to see us doing well! Gabrielle, get some salt and sprinkle it around us to get rid of this bad energy!"
George's whole body shook with rage at this mother and son's shamelessness. "You're committing a crime! I'm calling the police! I'm getting the building manager!"
"Call whoever the hell you want!" Tom shoved George aside and slammed the security door shut.
The impact shook the doorframe so hard that dust fell from it.
When he turned back around, Tom's face was full of hostility. "Bunch of cowards trying to scare me? As if."
I saw my opportunity and pretended to hide behind Tom fearfully, saying quietly, "Honey, the building manager is pretty close with Mr. Miller. What if he brings people to shut down the renovation? Mom said this is our chance for a luxury upgrade. If we stop halfway, the whole investment will go down the drain."
Tom slapped me hard across the face. "Gabrielle, can't you say something positive for once? Are you hoping that I won't get my floor-to-ceiling windows?"
I lowered my head and covered my face, my eyes ice cold.
