Chapter 8 - The New Blueprint
Six months later, the rain in Seattle was falling in sheets against the floor-to-ceiling windows of my newly expanded downtown engineering offices.
The recovery had been brutal. Two more surgeries, hundreds of hours of agonizing physical therapy, and countless days learning how to walk without a limp while the titanium pins held firm. But the wheelchair was gone, replaced by a sleek, ebony cane that I rarely had to use anymore.
Aero-Guard Consulting had not only survived the crisis; we had landed the single largest aviation safety contract on the West Coast, netting over two million dollars in government backing.
My parents were currently serving a three-year federal sentence at a minimum-security facility in eastern Washington, where Althia was reportedly teaching anger management classes and Stellin was learning how to balance a ledger without committing wire fraud.
Sutton had deleted all her social media accounts, moved back into a tiny studio apartment downtown, and was working a minimum-wage job trying to pay off the vendors who had sued her for breach of contract.
I stood by the window, holding a warm cup of coffee, looking out over the glittering skyline of the city where I had built my own life from the ground up.
The office door opened softly.
Vesper stepped in, dropping a fresh stack of partnership agreements onto my desk. ""The federal restitution funds have cleared into your corporate account. Full reimbursement plus punitive damages.""
""Good,"" I said, turning away from the window. ""Transfer twenty percent of that into the employee bonus pool. Everyone worked overtime through the audit.""
""Done,"" Vesper said with a rare, approving smile. ""Also, downstairs in the lobby, there's a delivery for you.""
""Another floral arrangement from a corporate client?""
May you like
""No,"" Vesper smirked, turning on her heel. ""Just a man with a very expensive briefcase, a cup of custom espresso, and a note saying he’s ready to help you inspect whatever you want.""
I couldn't help the laugh that bubbled up from my chest. I picked up my ebony cane, tapped it lightly against the polished oak floor, and walked out to meet the rest of my life."
