Chapter 7 - THE SILENT WEEKS
The next three weeks were a special kind of agony.
Leo asked for "Mr. Black Shirt" every single day.
"Is Adrien coming to watch the lion documentary?" "Did Adrien get lost because his grown-ups weren't watching him?" "Why isn't Adrien picking us up?"
Every question felt like a fresh cut to my heart. I tried to distract him with trips to the Shedd Aquarium, extra dinosaur toys, and homemade hot chocolate, but Leo was perceptive. He knew I wept silently in the kitchen after he went to bed. He knew why I stared out the salon windows whenever a black SUV drove down the street.
Adrien was completely gone. No calls, no texts, no surprise visits. He had respected my boundary so completely that it felt like he had been erased from existence.
Then, on a rainy Tuesday afternoon, my phone rang. It was my landlord, Mr. Henderson.
I gripped the receiver, bracing myself. "Mr. Henderson? If this is about the water bill, I mailed the check on Monday—"
"No, Ms. Bennett," the old man interrupted, sounding confused. "I'm calling to inform you that the building has been sold."
My stomach dropped. "Sold? What about my lease? I have two years left—"
"The new holding company finalized the purchase this morning," Henderson explained. "They’ve already drawn up your new contract. Your lease has been extended for ten years, and your rent has been reduced by fifty percent."
My heart stopped.
Don't buy the building, I had told him weeks ago.
"What is the name of the holding company?" I demanded, my voice trembling with sudden anger.
"It's called L.B. Capital Trust," he replied.
May you like
Leo Bennett Capital Trust.
I slammed the phone down, grabbed my coat, told Brenda to cover the rest of the afternoon appointments, and marched out into the pouring rain.
