Chapter 4 - The Confrontation
By Thursday evening, all three of them were hammering on my apartment door. The knocks were loud, heavy, and frantic. I set down my book, walked to the hallway, and unlocked the deadbolt. Eric walked in first when I opened it, completely ignoring basic manners. His face was red, and his tie hung loosely around his neck. He looked older than his forty-two years, the stress finally breaking through his arrogant posture. Vanessa followed with mascara streaked beneath her eyes. Sophie entered last, staring at her phone with her arms crossed, looking profoundly bored by her parents' panic.
“The conservatory gave us forty-eight hours,” Eric said, pacing my living room. “We must show proof of sixty thousand dollars in funding, or Sophie will lose her place next term.”
“The exact amount is fifty-eight thousand,” I replied.
He stopped pacing and stared at me for a moment. He didn't process how I knew the exact figure.
Vanessa stepped closer, invading my personal space. “The letter also mentions concerns involving donor standards and personal conduct.” She waved a crumpled piece of paper in the air. “We need you to loan us the money until Eric receives his next real estate commission.”
Sophie dropped onto my sofa without asking, kicking her feet up. “This is completely ridiculous,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I didn’t do anything wrong. They’re just trying to ruin my life.”
I looked at the filthy soles of her shoes resting against my clean rug. I thought about the platinum links sitting in my desk drawer. Then I faced my brother. “This was not an administrative mistake.”
The room became silent. The ambient noise from the street below seemed to fade away. Eric narrowed his eyes, his confusion slowly turning into suspicion. “What are you saying, Claire?”
I turned away from them and walked over to my desk. I picked up the printed page I had prepared earlier that afternoon. It was the final confirmation of cancellation from the donor portal. I walked back and extended it toward him. He grabbed it from my hand impatiently.
“What is this?” he demanded.
“The form ending the sponsorship.”
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Vanessa stared at me, her mouth slightly open. “How did you obtain that? The school refused to tell us anything.”
I remained silent, letting the quiet do the work for me. Eric read through the document. His eyes darted back and forth across the printed text. His expression gradually shifted when he reached the final section. At the bottom of the page appeared the name of the donor who had financed Sophie’s education for the previous three years. I watched his eyes stop at the signature. He blinked, as if the ink might rearrange itself into a different name. But it didn't. The name clearly printed there was Claire Henderson.
