"I know why you did it, Daniel."
The calmness in her voice makes my blood run cold.
"Then you understand—"
"I understand that you're broken. That you've been broken for a long time. That fear controls you more than any board member ever could."
"I can fix this," I say desperately. "Let me fix this—"
"You can't fix this." She crosses her arms. "You called me a liability while I was trying to tell you I'm carrying your child. You fired me, destroyed my career, my reputation, my ability to support myself. You can't fix that with an apology."
"Tell me what to do. I'll do anything."
"That's the problem. You think there's a quick fix. There isn't."
"Bailey, please—"
"Why did you do it?" She tilts her head, studying me like I'm a particularly interesting specimen. "Really. Not the board, not the company. Why did you want to destroy me?"
"I was scared—"
"Of what?"
I open my mouth. Close it. The truth catches in my throat.
I don't know. I don't actually know why I'm this broken.
"That's what I thought." She steps back into the building. "Figure out WHY you did this. Then maybe—maybe—we'll talk."
"But Bailey, the baby—"
"Is MY responsibility now. You made that choice when you fired me."
The door starts to close.
"Bailey, wait—"
“And don’t try coming back, I won’t be here.”
The lock clicks. Final anddefinitive.
I stand there in the hallway, exactly where she stood in my penthouse four days ago. The symmetry isn't lost on me.
I destroyed her. Now I'm the one broken.
My phone is in my hand before I realize I'm reaching for it. I pull up her contact, thumb hovering over call.
She told me to figure out why. Until I understand the root of my self-sabotage, nothing I say will matter.
She's right.
I lower the phone. Turn away from her building. Walk back to my car.
The drive home is a blur. The penthouse is still silent, still empty. Her sweater is still on the chair.
I sink onto the couch, staring at nothing.
Bailey is pregnant with my child. She's got no job, terrified and alone, trying to survive what I did to her.
