Chapter 2 - The Fire in the RainMark turned away from Brent, completely ignoring the manager's threats. He knelt down beside Evelyn, taking a paper napkin from the table to gently wipe the hot soup from her coat.
“Are you alright, ma’am?” Mark asked gently. “Did it burn you?”
Evelyn stared at him in complete disbelief. This man had just sacrificed his livelihood, his only source of income for his daughter, to defend a complete stranger in a secondhand coat.
“I am unhurt,” Evelyn said, her voice steady, though her heart pounded like thunder in her chest. “But you... he just fired you.”
“A job where you’re forced to step on people isn’t a job worth keeping,” Mark replied with a weary smile. He looked over at Lily, who was watching them with wide, innocent eyes. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s grab your coat.”
Brent pulled his smartphone out of his jacket, waving it triumphantly. “I’m calling corporate compliance, Vance. You’re blacklisted. You won’t get a job at another Northstar property or partner restaurant in this state!”
Mark didn’t answer. He carefully wrapped Lily in her bright yellow raincoat, took her small hand, and turned to Evelyn. “Let me walk you to the bus stop, ma’am. It’s not safe out here alone in this weather.”
Evelyn stood up, her soaked coat heavy against her shoulders, but her spine straight as steel. “Thank you. My name is Evelyn.”
“I’m Mark. And this is Lily.”
As the three of them stepped out into the freezing Chicago rain, Evelyn looked back one last time through the glowing glass windows of Café 118. Brent was already barking orders at a busboy to clean up the soup, looking smug and victorious.
He had no idea that the storm he had just started was about to consume him completely.
Walking down the sidewalk, the cold rain lashed against their faces. Mark held an umbrella over Lily and Evelyn, keeping himself exposed to the downpour.
“Where are you headed, Evelyn?” Mark asked, shivering slightly.
“I have a ride waiting a few blocks away,” Evelyn lied softly, wanting to know more about this remarkable man before revealing the truth. “What about you, Mark? What will you do now?”
Mark swallowed hard, his eyes reflecting the streetlights. “Lily has a chronic respiratory condition. Her medicine costs four hundred dollars a month. I had seven dollars in my account... now I have nothing. But I couldn’t stand there and watch him do that to you. My late wife always told me that if we lose our humanity to survive, we’ve already lost everything.”
Evelyn felt a lump form in her throat. “Your wife was a wise woman.”
“She was,” Mark said softly. “We’ll manage. We always do.”
They reached the corner of the avenue, where a sleek, black dark-tinted SUV was idly idling by the curb. Dana Brooks was sitting in the front passenger seat, watching intently.
Evelyn stopped. She turned to face Mark and took his calloused hand in hers.
May you like
“Mark,” Evelyn said, her voice dropping all pretense of vulnerability and ringing with absolute authority. “You gave me your last seven dollars tonight. Tomorrow, I am going to return the favor.”
Before Mark could process her words, Evelyn stepped toward the SUV. The rear door slid open automatically.
