She gathered her purse and walked out. She didn't look back. She walked to the elevator bank, pressed the button, and took a deep breath. She was going to go get a glass of wine. She was going to order a steak. She was going to breathe.
The elevator chimed on the ground floor. The doors slid open to the marble lobby.
Sarah stepped out, eyes fixed on her phone.
"Sarah?"
The voice was cheerful. Too cheerful.
Sarah froze. She looked up.
Standing near the security desk, wearing a trench coat and looking flushed and bright-eyed, was Emily.
Sarah’s blood ran cold. She hadn't seen her sister since the night she kicked them out. Emily looked... different. She wasn't cowering. She wasn't ashamed. She was glowing.
"What are you doing here?" Sarah asked, her voice ice. "Are you stalking him now?"
Emily smiled. It was a beatific, delusional smile. She took a step toward Sarah.
"I was waiting for him," Emily said. "I didn't want him to be alone after... you know. The signing."
"He’s gone," Sarah said, sidestepping her. "He left five minutes ago. Goodbye, Emily."
"Wait, Sarah," Emily called out.
Sarah didn't stop. She kept walking toward the revolving doors.
"I wanted you to know," Emily said, her voice carrying across the echoey lobby. "I know you hate us right now. But... we're going to be okay. We're having a baby."
Sarah stopped.
The world went silent. The sound of the revolving door, the chatter of the receptionist, the traffic outside—it all vanished.
She turned slowly.
Emily was standing there, her hands resting on her stomach, smiling that sickening, victorious smile.
"I'm pregnant," Emily said, tilting her head. "Harrison is going to be a dad. Isn't that wild?"
Sarah stared at her.
She looked for a lie. She looked for a cruel joke. But she saw the truth in Emily’s eyes. The absolute, unshakeable confidence.
Harrison hadn't just left. He hadn't just cheated.
He had planted a flag in the scorched earth.
Sarah didn't scream. She didn't faint. Her brain simply engaged the emergency override system. Autopilot: ON.
"I see," Sarah said. Her voice sounded like it was coming from a tin can. "Well. I hope it’s worth it."
She turned around. She pushed through the revolving door.
She walked to the valet stand. She handed the ticket to the attendant. She waited three minutes. She tipped him five dollars.
She got into her car. She adjusted the mirror. She put the car in drive.
She drove for twenty minutes, navigating the rush hour traffic with mechanical precision. She used her turn signals. She stopped at red lights. She felt absolutely nothing. She was a robot piloting a machine.
