Chapter 17 - The Clean Slate
The federal courthouse steps were still slick with rain when we finally walked back outside, but the storm clouds had broken, and a pale, brilliant afternoon sun was beginning to pierce through the Portland sky.
The horde of journalists was still there, but the tone had shifted entirely. Flashbulbs blinded us once again as reporters thrust microphones toward our faces.
“Mr. Prescott! Is Marcus Vance facing federal indictments?”
“What does this mean for the future of Prescott Technologies?”
I stopped at the top of the granite steps, wrapping my arm around Cassandra’s waist and pulling her close. I looked directly into the glass eye of the primary television camera, letting my voice carry steady and clear over the hum of the city.
"Prescott Technologies can do whatever it wants," I said into the microphones. "The patents belong to the public medical trust. I am officially resigning from the tech sector, effective immediately. My work here is done."
With that, we walked down the steps, climbed back into our old Ford pickup, and drove away from the courthouse, away from Wall Street, and away from the ghosts of our past.
That evening, back in our quiet Victorian home in Portland, the atmosphere felt lighter than air. The kids were asleep upstairs, their gentle breathing filling the second-floor hallway, while Cassandra and I sat out on the wide front porch, watching the sun dip below the jagged silhouette of the evergreen trees.
"You're really out," Cassandra said softly, resting her head against my shoulder as we shared a single mug of hot tea. "No more boardrooms. No more hostile takeovers. No more billion-dollar stress."
"Never again," I smiled, kissing the top of her head. "I spent my whole life trying to buy insurance against loss, Cass. I thought money could fix everything. But sitting in that courtroom today, watching Marcus throw his life away for a company that didn't care about him, I realized the only wealth that actually matters is right here on this porch."
May you like
She smiled, her green eyes catching the golden light of the fading dusk. "Good. Because the kitchen sink is leaking again, and your tech billionaire salary isn't going to fix it. You're going to have to use a wrench like a normal human being."
"I can handle a wrench," I laughed, pulling her closer as the first stars began to blink into existence across the evening sky.
