Chapter 10 - The Phoenix
Six Months Later.
The Arizona sun beat down on the freshly painted sign above the storefront: Anastasia’s Tech & Smart Solutions.
I stood on the sidewalk, wiping a smudge of dust off the glass, and smiled. The settlement I had received from the divorce and the subsequent civil suit against Melissa had been astronomical. I had paid off my parents' mortgage, bought their hardware store the massive expansion they always dreamed of, and opened my own business right next door.
Callan was serving a three-year sentence for domestic battery. Without his mother's money to protect him, he had pleaded out. Melissa and Brooklyn were embroiled in federal court over corruption and bribery charges, their social status completely obliterated. Their flagship hotel had been sold at auction to cover legal fees.
The door to my shop chimed, and I turned to see Elias walking in, holding two cups of coffee. He looked less tired these days, wearing a sharp jacket, courtesy of his newly booming media company.
"Morning, boss," he grinned, handing me a cup. "You catch the news this morning?"
"I try not to watch the news anymore, Elias. It's bad for my blood pressure," I laughed, taking a sip.
"Well, you might want to hear this one. Detective Reynolds just flipped. He's testifying against Melissa in exchange for a lighter sentence. She's looking at ten years in a federal penitentiary."
I took a deep breath, letting the cool air of the shop fill my lungs. For the first time in my life, the mention of the Harrington name didn't send a spike of anxiety through my chest. They were ghosts to me now. Relics of a past life that I had burned away.
"Good for him," I said softly.
I walked over to the counter, checking the display of a new, state-of-the-art security camera system. I adjusted the lens, ensuring the tiny red recording light was visible.
"You always check those things like three times," Elias noted, leaning against the counter.
May you like
"I have a deep appreciation for the truth, Elias," I smiled, looking into the lens. "You never know when someone is watching."
I stepped out of the store into the bright morning light, leaving the darkness far behind me. I was no longer the frightened girl holding a ladle. I was the architect of my own life, and the foundation was finally unbreakable.
