“I thought you sold yourself,” she whispered.
I wiped my face. “You thought the worst of me very easily.”
Her mouth trembled. “I know.”
“You were my person. And you made me feel cheap for trying to survive.”
Violet looked down. “I’m sorry, Layla.”
I believed her. I wasn’t ready to make her feel better.
“You thought the worst of me very easily.”
***
Rick died four months later. Daniel was removed from the company before the year ended. The records made silence impossible.
Angela lost her seat on the foundation board after two senior staff members backed up what Rick had documented. She stopped acting like the room was hers.
Violet came to see me a week later with red eyes and no excuses. She had read every bill, transfer, and note in Rick’s hand.
“I was wrong about you,” she said.
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