Chapter 7 - The Demand
The next morning, while Maisie was happily babbling on a blanket in the solarium, my mother called again. This time, her tone was entirely different. The screeching rage from the night before had been replaced by a sickening, syrupy warmth that made my skin crawl.
""Good morning, sweetheart,"" Evelyn purred. ""How is my precious little granddaughter doing today?""
The hypocrisy was so thick I could almost taste it. ""Maisie is doing wonderfully, Mom. What did you want to talk about?""
Evelyn cleared her throat, adopting the somber, heavy-hearted tone she usually reserved for funerals or asking for favors. ""Well, Jenna... seeing your success yesterday really opened my eyes. It made me realize how resilient you are. But it also made me realize that while you’re out here living in absolute opulence, your family is drowning.""
I leaned against the granite counter, keeping my voice level. ""Who is drowning, exactly?""
""All of us!"" Evelyn said, her voice rising with dramatic urgency. ""Kyle’s student loans are crushing him, and his rent in downtown Portland just went up forty percent. He needs at least twenty thousand dollars to pay off his high-interest cards so he can qualify for a mortgage to propose to Savannah. And Brinn’s car transmission just blew out last week. She needs a new vehicle for work.""
I listened in complete silence.
""And then there's me,"" Evelyn continued, her voice trembling with manufactured tears. ""The foundation on my house is settling. The contractor quoted me thirty-five thousand dollars to fix it before winter hits, or the whole back porch will collapse. I was going to suffer in silence, Jenna. But then I saw that house. I saw the thousands of dollars you spent on lobster, truffles, and private chefs just for one afternoon!""
""The owner of the estate provided the chef and provisions as a performance bonus, Mom,"" I said flatly. ""I didn't pay for the food.""
""That doesn't matter!"" Evelyn dismissed instantly. ""If you're designing for people like that, you're making hundreds of thousands. You have access to wealth now! It is your duty as a daughter to help this family. I calculated it with Kyle last night. Between his debts, Brinn’s car, and my foundation, we need seventy-five thousand dollars. It’s a drop in the bucket for the circles you’re running in now.""
""Seventy-five thousand dollars,"" I repeated slowly.
""Yes,"" Evelyn said, entirely devoid of shame. ""We can set it up as a family wire transfer on Monday. Kyle will send you his account details. After all, Jenna, family always rallies together. Isn't that what we've always taught you?""
My mind flashed back to a dark, rain-swept highway rest stop in Centralia. I remembered my hands shaking on the steering wheel. I remembered looking down at a phone screen that read: Don’t come to my birthday. We need a little time away from your baby.
""Mom,"" I said, my voice so quiet and steady that she stopped talking to listen. ""Where was this family when Derek walked out?""
""We were giving you space to process!"" she stammered.
""And where was this family on your fifty-eighth birthday?"" I asked. ""When I drove four hours with a three-month-old infant in the pouring rain, and you texted me to turn around because you 'needed time away from my baby'?""
There was a dead, suffocating silence on the other end of the line.
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""That... that was different, Jenna,"" Evelyn stammered, caught off guard. ""I was stressed! It was my birthday! You can't hold an old misunderstanding over my head when our family home is literally falling apart!""
""It wasn't a misunderstanding,"" I said coldly. ""It was a choice. You made yours in October. Now I'm making mine.""
