Chapter 28 - The Desperate Call to Nowhere
Arthur pulled his phone out with trembling, arthritic fingers, his eyes darting frantically around the foyer as if looking for an escape route that no longer existed. "I'll call Brandon's father," he stammered, his voice cracking with panic. "He’s a federal judge. He’ll put an injunction on this entire mess before you can even blink. You can't just throw us out on the street!" I watched him with mild, detached amusement, pulling my own phone from my pocket and tapping the screen once to illuminate the display. "Go ahead, Arthur," I encouraged him gently. "Call Judge Sterling. See if his office even picks up your line." Arthur slammed his thumb against the keypad, pressing the phone to his ear while pacing back and forth across the hardwood floor like a caged animal. One ring. Two rings. Three rings. A hollow, mechanical click echoed through the speaker as the automated switchboard picked up, followed by a crisp, professional voice stating that the subscriber was no longer accepting calls from this number. Arthur froze, the phone slowly sliding away from his ear as the terrifying reality of his total abandonment finally washed over him. Brandon’s family hadn’t just cut them off; they had completely severed all ties the moment the corporate scandal hit the financial news wires. They were social pariahs, broke, broken, and utterly alone in a world they had spent decades manipulating. Evelyn sank to the floor, her hands buried in her face, weeping uncontrollably as the cold autumn wind whistled through the open front door.
