Chapter 19 - The Final Goodbye
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The President turned his back on the ruined family. He walked over to Nora, who was slowly managing to sit up. One of the Secret Service agents quickly and respectfully helped her to her feet, taking the broken suitcase from the floor.
The President wrapped his arm gently around Nora’s waist, supporting her weight as she cradled a now-quiet Liam against her chest.
“Come, sweetheart. We are going home,” the President whispered, kissing her temple.
They began to walk toward the open doors, toward the waiting black SUVs. But just before they crossed the threshold, Nora stopped. She turned around to look at Arthur one last time.
Arthur was standing in the middle of the foyer, his face bruised, his empire destroyed, tears streaming down his face. He looked at her with desperate, pleading eyes, hoping for a final shred of the love she had once given him so freely.
Nora looked at him, feeling absolutely nothing but a profound, liberating emptiness.
“I never cared about your money, Arthur,” Nora said, her voice raspy from crying, but incredibly steady. “I never needed you to be rich. I just needed you to protect me and our son. Just once. But you chose to stand by and watch.”
Arthur opened his mouth to speak, to beg, to apologize, but he had run out of words.
“You chose your mother,” Nora finalized. “And now, you can keep her. But you will never see us again.”
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She turned away, leaning against the strong shoulder of her true father, and walked out of the mansion. The heavy door of the presidential SUV closed with a solid, definitive thud, severing her ties to that house forever.
Arthur stood entirely motionless, the red handprint burning on his cheek, while behind him, his mother wept hysterically into the cold marble stairs, mourning the instant death of their pride and their wealth.
