Chapter 7 - THE DESPERATE PHONE CALL
At 2:00 a.m. on Monday morning, my phone finally rang.
It wasn't a text. It was a direct cellular call from an unknown, blocked number.
I let it ring three times before sliding my thumb across the screen.
“Mom?”
Daniel’s voice sounded hollow, broken, and small—the exact voice of the little boy who used to scrape his knees on the pavement and run into my arms for comfort.
“I’m here, Daniel,” I said quietly.
“Mom, I… I didn’t know,” he sobbed, the sound of ragged breathing echoing through the phone. “I swear I didn’t know about Richard’s record. Vanessa said… she said her family just wanted a private ceremony because they were overwhelmed. She said you wouldn't understand because you're too traditional.”
“You didn’t invite me to my only child’s wedding, Daniel,” I replied, my voice steady and unyielding. “You stood under an arch I essentially paid for, smiling with strangers, and told the entire world that they were the family who ‘always supported you.’ Where was your father when you were in the hospital? Where was Vanessa when I was working night shifts at the hospital to pay your tuition?”
“I messed up! I was stupid! I was blinded!” he cried out, his voice cracking into a desperate wail. “Richard and Vanessa are packing their bags now. They’re screaming at each other in the motel room. The business deal fell through. Everything is ruined. Please, Mom… can we talk? Can I come home?”
“Home?” I asked softly. “Which home, Daniel? The one I bought, or the one you thought you could steal with a forged narrative?”
Silence stretched across the line, heavy and suffocating, broken only by his muffled weeping.
“The house is under contract, Daniel,” I said firmly. “A cash buyer from New York met our asking price this afternoon. The closing is on Friday. You are legally required to be completely moved out by noon tomorrow.”
“You’re… you’re really selling it?” he whispered in absolute horror.
May you like
“I’m not selling a house, Daniel,” I answered. “I’m cutting a tumor out of my life. Goodbye.”
I tapped the red button, ending the call, and blocked his number permanently.
