Chapter 46 Pane
Pane
My mother bursts into my office, white heels clacking against the marble floor. “What do you mean, you’re resigning?”
I close my laptop and shove my chair back. “I’m not resigning.”
Relief washes over her face.
“I’ve resigned.”
She stops in front of my desk and drops the printed letter I emailed only minutes earlier. It floats down and lands atop my computer.
“You can’t be serious, Pane. This must be a joke.”
“I assure you, it’s very serious.”
The fury in her face freezes in realization. My mother scoffs. “Is this about that woman? Rowe, was it? If it is, Pane, I did you a favor.”
I stand and slip my computer into its carrying case. “It’s about her. It’s about Dad. It’s about everything.”
“Your father—”
“You kept him from me,” I explode. “For over half my life, you lied about him.”
“Who’s to say that I lied?” She tosses her arms into the air. “Have you met him?” When I don’t answer, she rocks back. “I see. So you’ve talked to Frank. Well, I can tell you that he’s filling your mind with poison.”
“No, Mom. You’re the one who’s filled my mind with poison”—I shove my finger toward her—“and I’m done with it. I’m going to make sure Natalie doesn’t suffer the same fate Stone and I did, cut off from a dad who loved us.”
Her face turns bright red. “You have no right.”
I lean in and see the fear brightening her eyes. The great Sylvia Maddox, the woman who’s led the company for years, is terrified of losing control over the very people she claims to love.
“Goodbye, Mom. Good luck.”
As I leave my office for the last time, she shouts, “You’ll regret this, Pane. Without the Maddox Group, you’re nothing.”
I pull the door open, stop, and turn around. “No, I’m not.”