Chapter 9: The Consequence
The federal courthouse was a monolithic block of granite, imposing and utterly devoid of warmth. I sat in the prosecution's prep room, a cup of lukewarm coffee resting in my hands. Today was the deposition for the civil suit running parallel to the criminal charges. Today was the day I had to look Nathan in the eye.
When the bailiff escorted him into the room, I almost didn't recognize him.
The bespoke Tom Ford suits were gone, replaced by a drab, ill-fitting gray suit provided by his attorneys. The arrogant smirk that usually played on his lips had eroded, leaving behind a deep, haggard frown. His hair, once perfectly styled, was thinning and graying at the temples. He looked like a man who had not slept in months.
He took a seat across the heavy mahogany table. His lawyers flanked him, tight-lipped and tense. Donovan sat beside me, a silent, immovable anchor.
For an hour, the lawyers spoke in circles, discussing asset forfeiture and restitution. Nathan remained silent, his eyes fixed on the grain of the wood. But when a recess was called and the lawyers stepped out to confer with the judge in chambers, we were left alone with only a bored bailiff by the door.
Nathan finally looked up. His eyes, once sharp and commanding, were red-rimmed and hollow.
"Are you happy, Victoria?" he asked. His voice was a rasp, stripped of its former charm. "You burnt the whole house down just to get me out."
"I didn't burn it down, Nathan," I said, my voice eerily calm. "I just turned on the lights. You're the one who built it out of rot."
He leaned forward, a flicker of his old desperation surfacing. "We built this together. You and I. Before you let your ego get in the way. If you just drop the civil suit, let me keep the Hampton house, I can plea down the criminal charges. I have nothing left. You've won. What more do you want?"
I studied him. I remembered the night he had locked me out of the system, the night he had hired security to physically remove me from my own building in the pouring rain. I remembered the cold panic, the realization that the man I had trusted as a partner had methodically planned my absolute destruction.
"I don't want anything from you, Nathan," I said softly.
"Then let it go!" he pleaded, a genuine crack in his voice. "Show some mercy."
I leaned in closer, dropping my voice to a whisper meant only for him. "You once told me that business is a winter sport. You said that to survive, you have to be colder than the ice around you. You tried to bury me in that cold, Nathan."
He swallowed hard, shrinking back into his chair.
May you like
"I'm not destroying you out of vengeance," I continued, my gaze holding his captive. "I'm destroying you because it is the consequence of your own actions. You don't get to ask for a blanket when you're the one who caused the blizzard."
The lawyers returned before he could answer. But the silence in the room was absolute. Nathan didn't say another word for the rest of the day. He understood, finally, that the cold he had created was going to be his home for a very, very long time.
